Migrant boat capsizes off Senegal killing 39

Dakar/Senegal: The death toll from a migrant boat capsize off Senegal rose to 39 on Monday after rescuers recovered more bodies, as the search continued for passengers feared missing. Only one person has been rescued alive, ABC News reported.

The boat, carrying migrants attempting to reach Spain's Canary Islands, overturned on Sunday in the Atlantic off the coast between the capital Dakar and the northern city of Saint-Louis, near Kébémer. It had departed from Saint-Louis and was heading towards the Spanish coast. The exact number of passengers aboard remains unknown.

Senegal's Interior Ministry had initially reported at least 21 deaths on Sunday. Saliou Diouf, founder of migrant assistance organisation Boza Fii, said all the bodies recovered so far were those of Senegalese nationals.

The disaster has once again exposed the deadly risks of the Atlantic migration route, increasingly used by West Africans seeking to reach Europe. Migrants undertake an approximately 800-mile journey in uncovered wooden canoes, driven by unemployment, poverty and limited economic opportunities.

According to Spanish migrant rights organisation Walking Borders, 635 people died attempting to reach the Canary Islands between January and May 2026. The organisation estimates that 21 out of every 100 people undertaking the crossing die during the journey.

President Bassirou Diomaye Faye expressed condolences to the victims' families and vowed to intensify action against human trafficking networks organising the dangerous crossings.

The tragedy comes days after Senegalese authorities intercepted another boat carrying 142 migrants attempting to reach Spain. The group included 23 women, two infants and two children from Senegal, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea and Nigeria.

Meanwhile, Spain declared an emergency on the island of El Hierro on Saturday after more than 3,300 migrants arrived in over 30 boats since early November.