Spain rescues boat with 86 migrants, hundreds likely still missing

Spanish maritime rescue that dispatched a plane and a ship to search for a fishing vessel from Senegal with about 200 migrants on board and missing for nearly two weeks, on Monday discovered what appears to be a different migrant boat.

The reconnaissance plane spotted a boat 71 miles (114 km) to the south of the island of Gran Canaria, which the rescue serviceinitially thought could have been the missing boat.

But its spokesperson later said the rescue vessel found 86 people on board and only a further investigation would show where it had sailed from.

The boat was being towed to Gran Canaria.Migrant aid group Walking Borders said on Sunday that the fishing vessel with about 200 people and another two boats – one carrying about 65 people and the other with between 50 and 60 on board – had been missing for about two weeks since they left Senegal to try to reach Spain.

Helena Maleno of Walking Borders said on Monday that the families of the at least 300 migrants on board the three boats had not received any new information about their whereabouts.The condition of the migrants was unknown.

via Reuters