More illegal migrants arriving in Malaga

THE number of illegal migrants arriving on boats to the shores of Malaga has doubled in the past year. 

So far in 2015, 181 people have been attended to by Malaga Red Cross.

Between October 29 and December 1 alone, 64 people have been rescued by lifeboats, seven bodies recovered and 32 people, including a baby, are missing. 

The number of boats has tripled and the number of people who have reached land so far this year has reached levels seen in 2007. Although before that, in 2006 and 2005, there were 551 and 710, respectively. 

According to immigrant care association, Malaga Acoge, the reason why there are more migrants arriving in Malaga is because more are being rescued in the Alboran Sea and for different reasons are being brought to Malaga Port. Most of them were not originally heading for Malaga, but rather the usual routes used by people traffickers to Cadiz, Granada and Almeria. 

Traffickers cram the boats with people with no consideration for their lives. In October, a boat sank 50 miles from Malaga with 54 people on board. Only 15 were rescued. 

Another reason there are more people arriving is the good weather this year. Normally, the last few months of the year don’t see as many migrants arriving.