The Spanish Sea rescue assisted people off El Hierro in at least five boats on 13 November. There were 433 people on board in total, including at least 51 women and 26 minors, the news agency EFE reported, citing the island’s rescue services. This was a provisional figure: that evening, a rescue boat was already on its way to a sixth boat.
According to the Canary Islands regional broadcaster RTVC, two more boats carrying a total of 270 people reached the port of La Restinga. The broadcaster cited the medical service assisting the arrivals. The first arrival was late on Friday evening, the second early on Saturday morning. According to the medical service, nobody from these two groups had to be taken to hospital.
According to the report, the first of the two boats carried 122 people from Senegal and Guinea. They included six women and nine possible minors. The group said they had set off from Senegal five days earlier. One person was treated for back pain.
According to RTVC, the second boat carried 148 people from Senegal and Gambia, including 18 women and twelve possible minors. The ages still had to be confirmed. The passengers said they had been at sea for six days and had also set off from Senegal. Medical responders and the Red Cross.
The 433 people from five boats were not a final tally for 13 November. For the rest of the day, RTVC reported six boats that had arrived earlier, carrying 520 people; the later arrival shortly before midnight was not included. However, the report gives different times for this arrival. It is therefore not possible to derive a precise, final daily tally from it.
The 270 people from the two overnight arrivals should also not be added to the daily figure without clarifying the timing: one boat reached La Restinga before midnight, the other after. El Hierro is part of the Canary Islands and therefore part of Spain.
Editor: Mira Cadena (Article created with AI assistance).