A record number of migrants arrived in a single day in Spain’s Canary Islands on Saturday. Nearly 1,500 migrants reached the archipelago on 14 boats, the highest number to arrive in one day since 2020.
The news agency EFE reported the figures on Sunday, citing the maritime rescue service. According to the service, a total of 1,488 migrants were rescued from 14 boats with the help of Spain’s coast guard.
The previous one-day record was 1,461 migrants rescued on 7 November 2020. Saturday’s arrivals broke that record.
Arrivals in the Canary Islands from countries in West Africa have risen sharply since October. Arrivals in the first 10 months of this year were slightly lower than in the same period last year, but they jumped suddenly last month. That has put pressure on reception centres and emergency services in parts of the archipelago, especially on the smaller and less populated islands.
Most of those rescued are nationals of Senegal, Gambia and Guinea-Conakry. One boat rescued on Saturday carried 240 passengers, including 12 women and 36 children. They were taken to the island of El Hierro.
In all, 12 boats reached El Hierro, one reached Gran Canaria and more landed in Tenerife. Spain’s minister of territorial policy, Ángel Víctor Torres, is due to visit El Hierro on Sunday to review the situation and discuss the sudden arrival of migrants.
The Atlantic route from West Africa to the Canary Islands is known as one of the most dangerous migration routes in the world. Every year thousands of people make the risky journey in overcrowded boats, crossing rough seas, strong currents and long distances in the hope of reaching Spain.
Sea conditions on the route are usually more favourable in autumn, so crossings rise at this time of year. According to Spanish government figures, arrivals in the Canary Islands from 1 January to 31 October this year were 5.5 percent lower than in the same period last year.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report