Scores Missing Following Vessel Holding 200 Migrants Sinks off The Gambia.
A minimum of seven souls have died and a significant number are lost after a boat transporting approximately 200 people trying to get to Europe sank off the coast of The Gambia, authorities say.
The craft flipped on Wednesday midnight close to Jinack village in the northern bank region and it was subsequently discovered "grounded on a sandbank", the Gambian military authorities announced officially.
96 individuals have been rescued so far and a search is continuing for other passengers who were on board the shipwrecked vessel that was heading towards the Canary Islands of Spain.
The perilous journey over the the Atlantic has emerged as a rising pathway for African asylum seekers seeking entry into Europe.
Nearly 47,000 people made it to the Canary Islands in last year and data indicates in excess of nine thousand individuals perished trying.
Search and Rescue Efforts
Following the Wednesday incident, the navy initiated a search operation, using a number of military boats and a fishing boat that came to assist, the defence ministry said.
Officials state several of the victims are not from The Gambia and that their nationalities are still under confirmation.
The deceased of the seven victims who perished at sea have been recovered, and ten of the survivors are said to be in serious condition and undergoing emergency treatment.
A Frequent Pathway
This West African nation is one of the routes taken by migrants trying to reach Europe, often on hazardous voyages across ocean and terrain.
Over the past few years, the European Union has forged deals with multiple North African nations designed to reducing undocumented migration.