Migrant boat capsizes near Spain's Canary Islands, 7 dead

Spanish emergency services say four women and three girls died when a small boat carrying migrants capsized while arriving to port at one of Spain's Canary Islands on Wednesday.

Spain's maritime rescue service, which located the boat some 9.6 km from shore, said the boat tipped over as rescuers started removing minors as it arrived at a dock on the island of El Hierro.

The movement of people on the boat caused it to tip and then turn over, dumping the occupants into the water, the service said.

Emergency services for the Canary Islands said four women, a teenage girl and two younger girls perished in the accident. One of the girls was found by a rescue diver.

Local media reports said the small boat appeared to be packed with over 100 people. Spanish rescuers and members of the Red Cross pulled people out of the water.

The Spanish archipelago located off Africa's western coast has for years been a main route for migrants who risk their lives in dinghies and rubber boats unfit for long journeys in the open sea. Thousands have been known to die on the way to European territory.

Nearly 47,000 people who made the crossing last year reached the archipelago, surpassing previous records for a second time. Most were citizens of Mali, Senegal and Morocco, with many boarding boats to Spain from the coast of Mauritania.