Spain News: Tragedy at sea in Motril

A TOTAL of 47 immigrants, including one deceased, have been rescued this morning from a semi-sunken vessel located about 37 miles south of Motril.

The 17 women and 29 men, were spotted by an Army plane around 3.30 AM who put out a rescue call which was attended by the ‘Salvamar Hamal’ Maritime Rescue vessel which travelled along with members of the Maritime Service of the Civil Guard. 

On arrival, they saw about seven or eight people in the water who were rescued, in addition to the deceased, an Asian citizen from Bangladesh who they tried to revive several times without success. According to sources, the rescue has been hampered by poor sea conditions.

Reports from the Civil Guard state that, along with the deceased, of Asian origin, and survivors from other areas such as Sierra Leone, Mali and Guinea, there had been several more people who, according to the testimony of the immigrants, died during the crossing but were thrown into the sea.