Over 200 migrants have been rescued from a boat just off the shore of the Spanish island of Gran Canaria.
This is the largest arrival to the island by boat this year which was visible to Gran Canaria coastguards on Sunday this week.
Among the 231 people, 14 were women and three were children.
The coastguards have confirmed that this is the largest number of people rescued from a single boat off the island of Gran Canaria this year.
There are now 32,878 migrants who have taken the dangerous route from West Africa to the Canary Islands this year, according to Government figures. This marks a 39.7% increase compared to the same time last year.
Spanish coastguards found the migrants close to Gran Canaria’s main port. According to reports, three migrants were hospitalised but none were in serious condition.
Despite the size of this vessel and favourable weather and navigation conditions in the area, data indicates that boat arrivals via the Canary route have decreased in recent weeks.
In fact, this was the only boat to reach the coast this weekend. In total, 2,070 migrants arrived on the islands in the first 15 days of October, which is 75.8% less than those recorded in the same two weeks of 2023.
Earlier this year, other crossings saw authorities estimate that 40 people had fallen into the sea and drowned after attempting to make the crossing.
In 2023, the Spanish Ministry of Migration declared a state of emergency in the Canary Islands due to an unprecedented influx of migrants.
The decision was made due to the Canary Islands facing an surge in migrant arrivals, making it the deadliest route in the world.
