ARGUINEGUIN, Spain: Two people died and five are feared dead after they attempted to reach Spain’s Canary Islands on a boat with migrants on board, authorities said on Tuesday.
The pirogue — a type of dugout canoe — was sighted on Monday evening at around 8 p.m. (2000 GMT) by a merchant vessel which alerted authorities on the island of Gran Canaria.
Rescue services deployed helicopters to evacuate the injured and a ship to tow the pirogue to the Gran Canaria port of Arguineguin, 76 nautical miles (140 km) to the north, where they were met by Red Cross staff and police.