Hopes fade of finding dozens missing after migrant boat sinks off Canaries

Hopes of finding 48 people missing from a migrant boat that sank close to the Spanish island of El Hierro were fading yesterday, in what could become the deadliest such incident in 30 years of crossings from Africa to the Canary Islands.

- Angela Giuffrida

Nine people, one of them a child aged between 12 and 15, have been confirmed dead after the incident in the early hours of Saturday morning.

Rescuers were able to save 27 of the 84 passengers who were trying to reach the Spanish coast. Spanish authorities said the people onboard were from Mali, Mauritania and Senegal. Three patrol boats and three helicopters were taking part in a renewed search yesterday, a Spanish coastguard spokesperson said.

A spokeswoman for the Canary Islands government told Reuters: "Unfortunately we presume the worst. The search goes on but it seems that the chances of finding someone alive are slim."