MADRID 

The Spanish Coast Guard has reached one of three boats carrying irregular migrants that went missing in the Atlantic Ocean while attempting to reach the Canary Islands from North Africa’s coast. 

The latest development follows an alert from the Spanish migrant rights group Caminando Fronteras (Walking Borders) about the three boats, with one carrying 60 irregular migrants, one 65, and the third 200 which departed from the southern shores of Senegal at different times and went missing in the Atlantic Ocean about 15 days ago.

The Spanish team initially dispatched a search plane to the area, and it was reported that they located the boat carrying 200 irregular migrants approximately 132 kilometers (82 miles) south of Gran Canaria Island and later directed another boat there.

The Coast Guard announced that 86 people, including six women in poor health, have been rescued from the boat.

Efforts are underway to bring the migrants to land and continue the search for the other two boats.

While irregular migration from North Africa’s coasts to the Canary Islands has been one of the most used routes in recent years, it has been observed that the flow is higher especially in the summer.

At least 559 irregular migrants died while trying to reach the Canary Islands in 2022, including 22 children, according to data from the United Nations International Organization for Migration (IOM).