ARCHIVED - Migrants rescued in Canary Islands after 11 days on the rudder of an oil tanker
The stowaways miraculously survived the terrifying journey from Africa to Spain
Three African migrants have been rescued by the Spanish coastguard after surviving the perilous 11-day sailing from Lagos in Nigeria to the Canary Islands, perched on top of the rudder of an enormous oil tanker. Incredibly, the stowaways only had to be treated for moderate dehydration after they were discovered in the port of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
The men were brought ashore by the rescue vessel ‘Salvamar Nunki’ after being sighted in the hull of the ship, their feet dangling just half a metre from the water.
The Maltese-flagged oil tanker ‘Alithini II’ left Nigeria on November 17 and arrived in Spain early this Tuesday with the migrants miraculously still on board. Having been at the mercy of the driving wind and waves, they were initially examined by rescue workers on the dock before being transported to hospital.
Txema Santana, a journalist and migration adviser to the Canary Islands government, tweeted: “It is not the first and it will not be the last. Stowaways do not always have the same luck.”
Illegal migration to the Canary Islands from north Africa grew by a staggering 51% in the first five months of 2022 compared to the same period last year and sadly, thousands of men, women and children lose their lives attempting the perilous crossing.
Situated just 100 kilometres west of Morocco, the Canaries are becoming an increasingly common choice for desperate migrants.
In November 2020, three stowaways were discovered on the rudder blade of the Ocean Princess II and a month earlier, four others were found on the hull of a Norwegian oil tanker when it docked in Las Palmas. Both ships had come from Lagos.
Image: Salvamento Maritimo
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