Smugglers spent 11 days at the helm of a tanker, traveling from Nigeria to the Canary Islands

THE Spanish Coast Guard saved three Immigrants who traveled from Nigeria at Canary Islandsbalancing at tanker rudderjust above the waterline.

Spanish authorities posted a photo on social media showing the three people perched on the helm of the Alithini II tanker. The Maltese-flagged vessel arrived in Las Palmas on Monday afternoon after an 11-day voyage from Lagos, according to the Marine Traffic website.

The migrants were taken to the port and received medical attention for hypothermia and dehydration, Spanish news agency EFE reported. “It’s not the first time and it won’t be the last. Smugglers don’t always have the same luck,” tweeted Txema Santana, a journalist and immigration adviser to the Canary Islands government.

In October 2020 four people traveled on the helm of a tanker sailing from Lagos and hid for ten days before being discovered by police as the vessel arrived in Las Palmas

Migrant arrivals in the Canary Islands – following perilous journeys from north Africa – have increased dramatically since late 2019, when controls on other Mediterranean routes were tightened. In the first five months of 2022, arrivals rose 51 percent compared to last year, Reuters reported, citing Spanish data.