Two bodies were discovered aboard a migrant boat carrying nearly 140 people near Lanzarote, while survivors said five others died at sea as it traveled toward Spain’s Canary Islands.
Spain’s maritime rescue service said crews reached the vessel early Nov. 2, about 150 kilometers northeast of Arrecife, Lanzarote’s capital. Nearly 140 people were aboard.
Survivors told authorities that five people had died on the crossing and that their remains were cast into the Atlantic. Two other bodies were on the boat when rescuers arrived.
The Canary Islands’ emergency coordination center said 132 people reached Arrecife on three separate boats early Nov. 2.
The regional government said sea arrivals in the islands were 285% higher in October than in October 2025. That monthly rise contrasted with the lower year-to-date tally: Spain’s Interior Ministry recorded 8,970 sea arrivals from Jan. 1 through Oct. 15, 2026, down 33.5% from 13,491 during the same period in 2025.
