Madrid: A Spanish non-profit organisation called Walking Borders reported on Wednesday that 39 migrants perished when their dinghy capsized in the Atlantic Ocean near the Canary Islands.
The coast guard reported that on Wednesday, divers recovered the body of a minor and saved 24 other migrants from the ocean. 39 people, including four women and a baby, had passed away, according to a tweet from Walking Borders, a group that keeps track of migrant deaths and helps surviving family members.
According to the group's founder Helena Maleno, the migrants waited more than 12 hours for help.
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A spokeswoman for the coast guard said that a Spanish helicopter sent to the area in response to a request for assistance from Moroccan authorities discovered the dead child but did not see any other survivors. She claimed that a Moroccan patrol boat saved 24 people, but she added that she was unsure of "how many people were on board the vessel" altogether. When contacted by AFP, the Moroccan authorities had no immediate comments. About 160 kilometres (100 miles) southeast of Gran Canaria, Spain, the sinking took place.
In recent years, as authorities have cracked down on unauthorised migration in the Mediterranean, the route taken by migrants from West Africa to the Canary Islands across the Atlantic has grown in popularity.
Such journeys are hazardous due to the Atlantic's infamously strong currents. Rescuers discovered a pregnant woman's body on Tuesday aboard a boat off the Canaries that was carrying about 50 migrants.
A common entry point for migrants looking for a better life in Europe is Spain. Attempts to travel to Spain by sea have resulted in over 11,200 deaths or disappearances since 2018, according to a Walking Borders report released at the end of 2022.
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The boat carrying migrants from Libya to Italy capsized last week off the coast of Greece, resulting in at least 82 deaths. One of the deadliest migrant-related accidents in the Mediterranean, estimates of the number of passengers range from 400 to over 700. Authorities are still unsure exactly how many people were aboard when it sank. Nine Egyptians have been detained by police on suspicion of smuggling migrants; one of them was the boat's captain.