A minimum of seven souls have died and a significant number remain unaccounted for following a vessel ferrying approximately two hundred migrants seeking to enter the European continent sank near the shoreline of the Gambian coast, officials state.
The vessel capsized in the early hours of Thursday close to Jinack village in the North Bank Region and it was later found "grounded on a sandbank", the nation's defense ministry stated in a release.
Ninety-six people have been rescued so far and a search is continuing for other passengers who were traveling on the sunken boat that was en route to Spain's Canary Islands.
The hazardous trip over the Atlantic Ocean has grown into a more frequent path for migrants from Africa attempting to get to European nations.
Almost 47,000 individuals made it to the Canaries in last year and estimates in excess of nine thousand individuals have died during the journey.
Rescue Operation
After Wednesday's accident, The Gambian Navy began a search operation, involving several naval vessels and a fishing boat that joined the effort, the defence ministry confirmed.
Officials state several of the victims are not Gambian nationals and that their identities are still being verified.
The remains of the seven victims who perished at sea have been retrieved, and 10 of those rescued are described as being in grave health and receiving urgent medical care.
A Common Migration Route
This West African nation is one of the routes utilized by migrants seeking to get to European countries, often on perilous trips over water and land.
Recently, the European Union has reached agreements with multiple North African nations aimed at limiting undocumented migration.
