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Senegal boat capsize: Death toll rises to 35
Published : Monday, 9 November, 2026 at 10:58 AM
Observer Online Report
The death toll from a migrant boat capsize off the northwestern coast of Senegal has risen to 35 from an earlier count of 21, emergency rescue workers said on Sunday, as search operations continued for missing passengers.
The latest tragedy occurred along the dangerous Atlantic migration route from West Africa to Europe, where thousands of people have died in recent years while attempting to reach Spain's Canary Islands.
Senegal's Interior Ministry initially said, 21 bodies had been recovered and one person rescued alive. It added that the casualty figures were preliminary as rescue operations were still underway.
Later on Sunday, the Senegalese Press Agency (APS) reported that the death toll had risen to at least 34. The figure was also confirmed by Action for Human Rights and Friendship (ADHA), a human rights organisation, in a statement to AFP.
APS reported that an unspecified number of people remained missing.
By Sunday night, emergency rescue workers said the death toll had climbed to at least 35, with one person rescued alive. They described the figure as preliminary, saying the casualty count had been changing since Friday.
An official at the Interior Ministry warned that the death toll could rise further.
Media reports said the pirogue, a small, flat-bottomed boat, capsized near the Lompoul dunes in the Kebemer department, between Dakar and the northern city of Saint-Louis.
However, Saliou Diouf, founder of Senegal's leading migrant support organisation Boza Fii, told AFP that the incident occurred on Friday.
He said the nationalities of all the victims had yet to be established as rescue operations continued. However, all the bodies recovered on Saturday were identified as Senegalese nationals.
In a Facebook post on Sunday, Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye said all state authorities and necessary resources had been mobilised to search for missing people, provide medical treatment to survivors and support the families of the victims.
Thousands of people from various West African countries attempt to cross the dangerous Atlantic Ocean every year in search of a route to Europe.
Meanwhile, Senegalese authorities said, 142 migrants were detained on Friday while attempting to travel to Spain aboard another small boat.
According to police, those detained included 23 women, two children and two other minors. They were nationals of Senegal, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea and Nigeria.
In a statement on Sunday, Senegal's Interior Ministry said it was determined to combat human trafficking networks, particularly by strengthening cooperation with neighbouring countries.
The ministry also said the interior minister would visit the accident site to meet the victims' families and convey the state's condolences.
Meanwhile, authorities on Spain's El Hierro island in the Canary Islands declared a state of emergency on Saturday amid an increase in migrant boat arrivals.
According to local authorities, more than 3,300 migrants had arrived on the island in around 30 boats since the beginning of November.
Authorities in Senegal, Mauritania and Morocco have stepped up maritime patrols near the departure points of migrant boats. As a result, smaller vessels have been forced to move further south towards the coasts of Gambia, Guinea-Bissau and Guinea, increasing the distance and duration of an already dangerous sea journey.
Sources: AFP, BSS
-MT
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Editor : Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury
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Published by the Editor on behalf of the Observer Ltd. from Globe Printers, 24/A, New Eskaton Road, Ramna, Dhaka.
Editorial, News and Commercial Offices : Aziz Bhaban (2nd floor), 93, Motijheel C/A, Dhaka-1000.
Phone: PABX- 41053001-06; Advertisement: 41053012; 01793317829, 01550707291, 01550707296
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