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Archive photo · 30 March 2010Salvamento Marítimo and Guardia Civil Rescue 1,488 Migrants in Canary Islands Record Day
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1,488 migrants rescued in a single day across 14 dinghies in the Canary Islands. Eight salvage vessels from Salvamento Marítimo and Guardia Civil assisted, focusing on El Hierro.
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Record rescues on El Hierro
Salvamento Marítimo and the Guardia Civil mobilized eight vessels and delivered the highest number of people assisted in a single day in the 32-year history of the Canary Route. The previous record was registered on November 7, 2020, when 1,461 people arrived with the quay of Arguineguín as the epicenter. Ángel Víctor Torres, Minister of Territorial Policy and Democratic Memory, will visit the port of La Restinga this Sunday at 13:00 to assess the island’s migratory situation on the ground.
The occupants disembarked on several islands, including Gran Canaria and Tenerife, with at least 167 minors. The Interministerial Immigration Commission agreed to declare a Migratory Emergency in the Canaries and approved the mobilization of 15.18 million euros.
Numbers, ports, and minors
The provisional balance comprised twelve cayucos with 1,235 people in El Hierro, one with 203 in Gran Canaria and another with 50 in Tenerife. The operation mobilized six Salvamento Marítimo vessels, Diphda, Acrux, Navia, Alpheratz, Mizar and Urania, and two Guardia Civil patrol boats, Río Tajo and Río Guadiato. The first arrival within the peak occurred at 04:01, when Salvamar Navia disembarked 148 people at La Restinga.
The 1,488 people disembarked this Saturday included 108 women and 167 minors, though these were provisional data. The occupants disembarked on several islands, including Gran Canaria and Tenerife, with at least 167 minors.
Funding, strain, and next steps
The extraordinary funding was intended to reinforce humanitarian aid resources and expand the number of places in the El Hierro reception centers. The Temporary Foreigners Reception Center (CATE) in El Hierro had 317 people registered up to this Saturday, not counting the latest arrivals, and 158 were transferred to Tenerife during the day. Fernando Clavijo, president of the Canary Islands Government, stated that the uninterrupted arrival of vessels so far this month had completely overwhelmed the island’s resources, with a population of only 11,423 inhabitants.
Rescue teams continued searching and the operation included disembarkations at the ports of La Restinga on El Hierro, Gran Canaria and Tenerife, as additional rescues remained underway. The Interministerial Immigration Commission agreed to declare a Migratory Emergency in the Canaries and approved the mobilization of 15.18 million euros.