At least 39 die as migrant boat sinks off Senegal

At least 39 people died when a boat carrying migrants capsized off Senegal on a journey toward Spain’s Canary Islands, Senegalese authorities said. One person was rescued alive, and the number still missing has not been established.

The small wooden boat overturned on Sunday off Senegal’s northern coast. Al Jazeera, citing state media, reported that it had left Saint-Louis and capsized near the Lompoul dunes, about 180km (112 miles) north of Dakar. Senegal’s interior ministry said the boat carried people seeking to migrate irregularly but did not say how many were aboard.

The death toll rose as emergency crews recovered more bodies. According to the BBC, four bodies found on Monday morning were buried after a collective funeral prayer organised by the fire service. Authorities said 24 victims had been identified and their bodies returned to their families, while 11 others awaited identification. Saliou Diouf, founder of the Senegalese migrant aid group Boza Fii, told AFP that all the bodies recovered by Sunday evening were Senegalese. The nationalities of others aboard remained unknown.

Rescuers were searching a 25km (15-mile) stretch of coastline, the BBC reported. Difficult access and strong currents pushing bodies farther south were complicating the operation.

President Bassirou Diomaye Faye offered condolences to the families and urged Senegalese people not to risk their lives on dangerous sea crossings. He also pledged to intensify efforts against those organising the journeys. “We will relentlessly continue the fight against those who organise these crossings and the work that gives our young people reasons to hope here,” he said in a statement posted on X.

A Senegalese human rights group, Action for Human Rights and Friendship, called for a parliamentary inquiry into the sinking. The group, known as ADHA, criticised what it called a “lack of lasting results” in efforts to prevent deaths at sea. “It is no longer enough to deplore shipwrecks, announce measures and count interceptions,” it said. Senegal’s interior ministry said it would continue combating people-smuggling networks, including through stronger cooperation with neighbouring countries.

The sinking came as arrivals strained services on El Hierro, a Spanish island in the Canaries. Authorities there declared an emergency on Saturday after more than 3,300 people arrived in about 30 boats since the beginning of November. Fernando Clavijo, president of the Canary Islands regional government, called the situation “absolutely unsustainable,” according to the BBC, citing Reuters.

Spanish migrant rights group Walking Borders recorded 635 deaths on the Atlantic route to the Canary Islands between January and May 2026. The BBC reported that the group estimated about 21 people died for every 100 who reached the islands during that period.

Senegalese authorities also intercepted a separate boat on Friday carrying 142 people trying to reach Spain, the BBC reported. Police said those aboard included 23 women, two babies and two other children, with nationals of Senegal, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea and Nigeria among the group.