Hundreds migrants from Africa flooded Spain's Canary Islands during a busy stretch spanning Friday to Monday, according to reports.
A group of 52 migrants was brought to the island of Lanzarote by Salvamento Marítimo, the Spanish coast guard, on Monday morning, adding to nearly 250 that reached the archipelago near Africa over the weekend.
"In the last 24 hours, a total of 238 people have arrived in the Canary Islands in five small boats and there has been one death," Canarias 7 reported on Sunday night.
#Migración | Una patera con 64 personas migrantes, trasladada a #GranCanaria, ha sido la última localizada en las islas este fin de semana
— RTVC (@RTVCes) March 27, 2022
238 personas rescatadas de pateras y cayucos. Una de ellas no superó la travesía pic.twitter.com/gPmxxc705x
Migrants continued arriving following the hectic weekend, with dozens more ferried to a Canaries port on Monday evening.
"Security and emergency personnel attended the migrants rescued by Salvamento in waters close to Gran Canaria last night at the Arguineguín dock. The SUC and Red Cross assessed 27 people who presented good general condition," 112 Canarias reported on Tuesday.
Efectivos de seguridad y emergencias atendieron anoche en el muelle de Arguineguín a los migrantes rescatados por @salvamentogob en aguas próximas a #GRANCANARIA El #SUC y @CruzRojaLP valoraron a 27 personas que presentaron buen estado general
— 1-1-2 Canarias (@112canarias) March 29, 2022
Nearly 2,700 illegal aliens arrived in the Canary Islands during the first four weeks of January, prompting Spanish media to warn the busy migration route had been 'reactivated.'
In mid-February, Frontex released data indicating traffic along the Western African migration route had surged 50% from the previous year.
📌Latest from the 🇪🇺 external borders:
— Frontex (@Frontex) February 15, 2022
The number of illegal border crossings at 🇪🇺external borders continues to be above pre-pandemic levels.
In January, the number of detections reached 13 160, 78% more than in 2021 and 23% more than in 2020
More ➡️https://t.co/tHzuyLW4u4 pic.twitter.com/sx9ONuKruM
Between 2020 and 2021, more than 45,000 migrants invaded the Canary Islands, often with the assistance of Spanish authorities or non-governmental organizations.
Most of the migrants who reach the Canaries plan to eventually travel to the European mainland, either by claiming asylum, hopping flights, or by paying human traffickers to facilitate the journey.
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(PHOTO: Europa Press via Getty Images)