EL HIERRO – The Canary Island of El Hierro continues to receive migrants from Africa. They arrive there in boats and put a lot of pressure on the already overcrowded reception centres. This weekend four more boats arrived.
There were a total of 449 migrants on board, including 30 minors. Their arrival was confirmed by sources from the Spanish maritime rescue service Salvamento Marítimo to the EFE news agency.
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The first of these boats, carrying 75 people, mainly from Sub-Saharan Africa, was located around 7.53 pm on Saturday. The Civil Guard patrol boat Río Segura accompanied this first boat to the port of La Restinga. There was one woman among the passengers. All migrants were in good health.
Second boat
Later that evening, around 11.10 pm, lifeboat captain Salvamar Adhara sighted lights at sea. That indicated the presence of a second boat. This was also taken to the port of La Restinga, where 130 people, including a woman and 12 minors, disembarked safely.
Two additional boats spotted
Shortly after these arrivals, two additional boats were reported. The Río Segura of the Guardia Civil was deployed again. This accompanied a boat with 132 migrants, all men, including 12 minors, to La Restinga. The Guardamar Concepción Arenal of Salvamento Marítimo was deployed for the second report. This had to rescue a boat drifting 10 miles south of La Restinga, El Hierro, because the engine would not start.
The last boat with engine problems
There were 112 people on board the latter boat, including nine women and six minors. These people also came from Sub-Saharan Africa. With the help of Salvamento Marítimo they were brought safely to El Hierro.
Also read: More than 6,600 migrants died on their way to the Spanish coast in 2023
