No fewer than seven souls lost their lives and many others are missing in the wake of a vessel ferrying around two hundred people trying to get to European shores capsized off the coast of Gambia, authorities say.
The craft flipped late Wednesday night close to Jinack in the northern bank region and it was later found "grounded on a sandbank", the country's defence ministry stated in a release.
Nearly one hundred people have been rescued so far and a rescue operation continues for those still missing who were aboard the sunken boat that was bound for Spain's Canary Islands.
The dangerous voyage over the the Atlantic has grown into a more frequent path for migrants from Africa attempting to get to European nations.
Almost 47,000 individuals reached the Spanish archipelago in last year and figures suggest over 9,000 migrants have lost their lives in the attempt.
Ongoing Mission
Following the Wednesday incident, The Gambian Navy launched a search operation, involving multiple navy ships and a fishing vessel that joined the effort, the defence ministry said.
Authorities say a number of those who died are foreign nationals and that their identities are still being verified.
The bodies of the seven people who drowned were found, and a dozen of the saved are described as being in grave health and receiving urgent medical care.
A Common Migration Route
Gambia is a common pathway utilized by asylum seekers seeking to get to the EU, frequently via dangerous journeys across ocean and terrain.
Over the past few years, the European Union has forged deals with several North African countries with the goal of curtailing irregular migration.
