At least four people were found dead on an immigrant boat in the Canary Islands on Sunday, the Spanish Red Cross said.
Spanish authorities recovered the bodies of the ship along with 19 survivors.
The migrants had tried to travel the dangerous route from West Africa to the Canary Islands with a boat unsuitable for the high seas.
Rescue services responded to an alarm call from a fishing boat that had located the boat just 120 miles south of the small island of El Hierro.
The helicopters moved those who were in serious condition and suffering from dehydration to the island of Tenerife.
In recent years, crossing the Atlantic from the west coast of Africa to the Canary Islands has become an important step for undocumented migrants and refugees.
There were record arrivals in 2020, more than eight times higher than in 2019, as the COVID-19 pandemic flattened Africa’s tourism economy and forced many more to embark on the risky journey.
According to the UNHCR refugee agency, hundreds of people have been killed or missing in their attempt to reach the archipelago in overcrowded and poorly equipped ships.
Since 2014, the Missing Migrants Project reports that more than 20,000 migrants have died trying to reach Europe from Africa.
From January 1 to March 31 this year, an estimated 3,400 migrants have arrived on the shores of the Canary Islands, according to Al Jazeera.
With publishing cables