Over 1,400 African migrants reached the Canary Islands over the weekend, with one vessel bringing a single-boat record of 321 people, as the Atlantic archipelago struggles to cope with its worst migrant crisis since 2006.
A total of 1,457 migrants reached the Spanish islands off the western African coast between Friday night and Sunday morning, authorities said on X (formerly Twitter), adding to a recent spike in arrivals.
An emergency services spokesman said all of the arrivals hailed from sub-Saharan Africa.
Saturday saw 321 people reach the island of El Hierro aboard one vessel, surpassing the previous record for a single boat of 280 on 3 October.
Spanish broadcaster TVE showed images of a multicoloured vessel crammed with smiling and waving passengers reaching port.
Latest data from Spain’s Interior Ministry show 23,537 migrants reached the Canaries between 1 January and and 15 October.
Más de mil migrantes han llegado en patera a Canarias en 24 horas
— RTVE Noticias (@rtvenoticias) October 22, 2023
El #Canal24horas habla con Alpidio Armas, presidente del Cabildo de El Hierrohttps://t.co/1YKsdA9ocs pic.twitter.com/UsA7YRoAAq
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