Rescuers pull 191 migrants from two boats off Lanzarote, seven dead on one

The two rescues

Salvamento Marítimo picked up two boats in the early hours of Monday, 2 November, in waters close to Lanzarote, with 191 migrants on board in total. The Salvamar Acrux made the first rescue, a boat carrying 59 men of Maghrebi origin, which was landed at Arrecife at 06.00. The second rescue was carried out by the Guardamar Urania after an operation that began shortly before 05.30, with 120 men and 12 women on board. At the time of reporting, that vessel was about to dock in Arrecife, the capital of the island.

Seven deaths on the second boat

Rescuers found two bodies on board the second boat. Survivors told the crew that five more people had been thrown into the sea during the crossing, which puts the death toll on that vessel at seven, according to Europa Press and La Razón. LaSexta said the circumstances in which those five people died were still unclear. ABC's introduction gives the number thrown overboard as three, but its later paragraph states five, and the other reports use five. LaSexta also placed the number of occupants at almost 140, citing Salvamento Marítimo sources who spoke to EFE, while La Razón counted 132.

Salvamar Acrux boat (59 men)59

Guardamar Urania boat132

Salvamar Acrux boat (59 men)

59 people

Guardamar Urania boat

132 people

Data from the article text

A busy night on the Canary route

The night of 31 October into 1 November was described as intense for rescues along the Canary route. Provisional counts reported by LaSexta put the number of people rescued that night at almost 300, across two interventions at Lanzarote and one at El Hierro. The figures are provisional and have not been finalised.

Canary government response

Fernando Clavijo, the president of the Government of the Canary Islands, responded on social media and said the Atlantic route was claiming lives again, this time off Lanzarote.

“The worst forecasts are being fulfilled.”

He also said these were not the first deaths in the latest surge of crossings, and he pointed to a rise in the migration route.

“Behind each one there is a life, a story and a family.”

Clavijo said the Canary Islands have long been asking for measures, resources and early action. He argued that the state cannot keep arriving late or leave the islands alone to face what he called a humanitarian drama, and he said the islands still had no answers from the Spanish government.