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In the chaotic scene at El Hierro's port, survivors clung to
ropes and life preservers tossed by rescuers.
Spain's maritime rescue service said the boat tipped over as
rescuers started removing young people onto a rescue craft
positioned between the migrant one and the quay. The movement of
people on the boat caused it to turn over, the service said.
Local media said the small boat appeared to be packed with over
100 people.
A helicopter evacuated two other children, a girl and a boy, to
a hospital in serious condition after they nearly drowned, the
service added.
“The drama witnessed on El Hierro should move us all, (those)
lives were lost in an attempt to find a better future,” Spanish
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said on social media.
The Spanish archipelago located off Africa’s western coast has
for years been a main route for migrants who risk their lives in
dinghies and rubber boats unfit for long journeys in the open
sea. Thousands have been known to die on the way to European
territory.
Nearly 47,000 people who made the crossing last year reached the
archipelago, surpassing previous records for a second time. Most
were citizens of Mali, Senegal and Morocco, with many boarding
boats to Spain from the coast of Mauritania.
The arrivals include thousands of unaccompanied minors.
Some 10,800 people had arrived via the Atlantic to the Canary
Islands by mid-May, down by 34% compared to the same period in
2024.
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