Tragedy at Sea: Boat Disaster Claims Lives of Migrants Bound for Canary Islands
As many as 50 individuals are presumed dead after a boat destined for the Canary Islands encountered severe difficulties during its 13-day journey along the treacherous Atlantic migration route from West Africa. The non-governmental organization Caminando Fronteras, also known as Walking Borders, reported that the ill-fated vessel departed from Mauritania on January 2, carrying 86 passengers. Upon receiving distress signals, the organization alerted Moroccan and Spanish authorities, leading to the rescue of 36 people by Moroccan rescuers. Regrettably, the fate of the remaining 50 passengers, predominantly from Pakistan, remains grim, as they are feared to have drowned.
Helena Maleno, the CEO of Caminando Fronteras, took to social media platform X to share the tragic news, stating, “Fifty people have died on a boat headed for the Canary Islands, 44 of whom were Pakistani. They spent 13 agonizing days at sea without rescuers reaching them.”
In response to this tragic event, the regional president of the Canary Islands, Fernando Clavijo, expressed his condolences and reiterated the urgent need for action as the Spanish archipelago grapples with record numbers of migrants and refugees arriving via the sea. "We can't just be witnesses to all this," Clavijo wrote on X. "The state and Europe need to act. The Atlantic can't continue being the graveyard of Africa. We cannot keep turning our backs on the humanitarian crisis."
Spain's maritime rescue service, Salvamento Marítimo, commented on the incident, stating that they had no information on this particular occurrence. However, they noted that they conducted an aerial search after receiving an alert about a boat that had left Nouakchott in Mauritania on January 10. A spokesperson stated, "We cannot say whether that was the same shipwreck."
Last year, a record 46,843 people successfully reached the Canary Islands, a notable increase from 39,910 in 2023, as more individuals risked their lives on the increasingly perilous Atlantic route. The organization Caminando Fronteras recently disclosed alarming statistics, revealing that at least 10,457 people died or vanished while attempting to reach Spain by sea from January 1 to December 5, 2024. This figure marks a 50 percent increase compared to 2023 and is the highest since the organization began tracking these numbers in 2007. The rise in fatalities has been attributed to the use of dilapidated vessels, hazardous waters, and insufficient resources for rescue operations.
Frontex, the European Union's border and coastguard agency, reported a significant drop in irregular crossings on the central Mediterranean route, falling by 59 percent last year, primarily due to decreased departures from Tunisia and Libya. Contrarily, crossings to the Canary Islands saw an 18 percent increase, driven primarily by departures from Mauritania, even as flows from other departure points dwindled.
This tragic incident underscores the ongoing humanitarian crisis at sea, calling for urgent actions to address the desperate plight of migrants risking everything in search of safety and a better future.
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