GRAN CANARIA, Spain (AP) — Spanish rescuers have safely brought more than 30 migrants safely to the Canary Islands, but not in time to save one child who reportedly died at sea. Rescuers said a small boat carrying 11 men, 20 women and three children was discovered late Friday some 160 kilometers (99 miles) south of Gran Canaria island. The survivors said a 9-year-old boy had died during the journey and they had tossed his body overboard. Spain's Interior Ministry says some 23,000 migrants arrived in the Canary Islands last year, up from some 3,000 in 2019. The people taking the boats are understood to be fleeing poverty, violence or other circumstances, including the COVID-19 pandemic, in their countries.
AP
Migrants, most of them from Morocco, are watched by Spanish Police after arriving at the coast of the Canary Islands, Spain on Monday, Nov. 23, 2020, after crossing the Atlantic Ocean sailing on a wooden boat. (AP Photo/Javier Bauluz)
Posted at 4:09 PM, Jan 16, 2021
and last updated 2021-01-16 16:09:57-05
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