By Borja Suarez

ARGUINEGUIN Spain (Reuters) – More than 300 migrants tried to reach Spain by boat were picked up Wednesday by the Spanish sea rescue service. There were nine people clinging onto a semisunken dinghy.

According to the rescue agency, it did not know of drownings reported by rights groups.

Helena Maleno (founder of Walking Borders), said that 18 people were killed trying to cross the dangerous border from Africa to Lanzarote. Reuters was unable to confirm the figure.

On Twitter, the rescue team stated that 319 migrants had been rescued from 6 boats (one carrying 120) and transported to Lanzarote/Gran Canaria.

Reuters footage captured dozens of red-knitted people arriving at Arguineguin port before sunrise on a rescue boat. They were then assisted to the pier and helped by masked, protectively dressed emergency workers.

Ten persons, including a pregnant lady and her child, were sent to the health centers, although none were considered in imminent danger.

Migrants trying to reach Spain have made the islands off West Africa their main destinations. However, a smaller percentage are trying to cross to Spain through the Mediterranean Sea.

223,316 immigrants arrived illegally in the Canaries in 2021, up from 23,271 last year. According to data from the interior ministry, last year was the most busy for these crossings over the past decade.

Walking Borders stated that over 4,400 migrants, which included at least 205 children were seeking to reach Spain, had been lost at sea while trying to get there in 2021. That’s more than twice as many people who tried to travel from Spain in 2020. It is also the largest number since 2018, when the group started counting.