Senegal smuggling boat sinks; 1 dead, 11 rescued

Dakar, August 28

Dozens of people remained missing and feared dead on Saturday after a wooden boat capsized off the coast of Senegal, the latest tragedy in a country where untold thousands have tried to migrate to Europe by sea.

Crews rescued eight Senegalese and three Gambians overnight and found the body of one person who had drowned, though at least 60 people were believed to have been on board at the time, according to Col Mactor Diop.

Senegalese migrants have long risked their lives at sea aboard small fishing boats for a chance to reach Europe, and the economic hardships brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic have led to a resurgence of attempts.

Many are embarking for the Canary Islands, the Spanish archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean off the northwestern coast of Africa, where arrivals have increased by 750 per cent last year.

At least 849 people died this year on the route to the Canary Islands, more than four times as many as any of the previous six years, according to a report by the UN’s migration agency. – PTI