Spain: Migrant boat capsizes in Canary Islands port, killing at least seven

A boat carrying dozens of migrants capsized on Wednesday upon arrival at a port in the Canary Islands, killing at least seven people, including three minors, in a new tragedy on the highly dangerous Atlantic route linking Africa to Europe.

"At this time, the capsizing of a boat in La Restinga has left seven dead: four women, a 16-year-old minor and two five-year-old girls," the Canary Islands' rescue services announced at around 12:30 local time, in a death toll that had been constantly evolving since mid-morning.

Emergency services also said that two other children – a three-year-old boy and a five-year-old girl – were treated in a serious condition and evacuated to hospital on board a medical helicopter.

"Four other minors suffering from breathing difficulties are also being transferred to the hospital in El Hierro, the smallest island in this Spanish archipelago located off the coast of northwest Africa," emergency services said.

The President of the Canary Islands, Fernando Clavijo, who visited La Restinga, called for more resources and aid to address these tragedies. "We are once again seeing the harshest face of immigration, which those far away cannot fully appreciate, and decisions must be made now," he wrote on the social network X.

"Please make us heard! Sadness and helplessness, and at the same time, pride in all those who jumped into the sea to try to save lives and in the teams who had to respond to this tragedy," he concluded.

The accident occurred in the morning when the makeshift boat suddenly capsized as it approached the quay in the port of La Restinga, a maritime rescue source said, without giving further details.

Images from Spanish public television TVE showed the boat completely overturned, with dozens of migrants struggling to climb onto the hull and then reach the rescue boat that had positioned itself alongside. Some, who had fallen into the water, were clutching lifebuoys thrown by rescue services, amidst great confusion.

Thousands of migrants have died in recent years trying to reach Europe from Africa via the Canary Islands, on board boats that were often overloaded and in poor condition.

After a record year in 2024 , with a total of 46,843 migrants arriving in the Canaries, the rate of arrivals in the archipelago has fallen sharply in recent months, with 10,882 arrivals between January and mid-May, 34.4% less than in the same period in 2024, according to the Ministry of the Interior.