A total of 1,414 people have arrived on El Hierro since last Monday aboard around twenty small boats, following the surge in migration over recent weeks, which has made it necessary to reactivate the reception and referral system.
On Sunday, the Government Delegation transferred 471 of these people to facilities on Gran Canaria on a chartered ferry from the port of La Estaca, meaning that since last Friday around 900 migrants have left the island to ease the pressure on El Hierro’s facilities, according to sources involved in the operation who spoke to EFE.
Of the people referred on Sunday, 390 were at the Temporary Reception Centre for Foreign Nationals (CATE) in San Andrés and a further 81 were at the former convent in La Frontera, run by the Red Cross.
El Hierro: Wave of arrivals puts pressure on the supply system once again
The rise in arrivals has once again put pressure on a system which, during the busiest periods on the Canary Islands route, has had to juggle providing care for hundreds of newly arrived people with health and support resources designed for an island with a population of just over 11,000.
The President of the Canary Islands, Fernando Clavijo, warned this week that the island’s hospital is at risk of becoming overwhelmed once again and announced that he will convene the Canary Islands Migration Pact in response to what he considers a lack of action on the part of the central government.
The regional government has also called for more resources and better coordination with the central government following an increase in arrivals in September and October compared with the same months in 2025, and has emphasised that the cumulative reduction compared with previous years does not eliminate the problems caused by concentrated waves of arrivals on islands such as El Hierro.
Canary Islands: Government representative points to a 30 per cent decline
The Government delegate, Anselmo Pestana, offered a different interpretation, however, and on Friday attributed the rise to improved sea conditions, which tend to lead to an increase in departures at this time of year. He also pointed out that, despite the rise, the total number of arrivals by sea in the Canary Islands in 2026 is down by approximately 30 per cent compared with the previous year.
Pestana also pointed out that there continues to be significant migratory pressure on the African coast, although he highlighted the cooperation of countries of origin and transit and stated that around 67 per cent of those who have attempted to travel to the Canary Islands this year have been intercepted before reaching the archipelago.
Atlantic Route: Fatalities and serious crimes are keeping investigators busy
The latest surge has once again highlighted the most tragic aspect of the Atlantic route, the deadliest in the world.
Last Wednesday, two young men were buried in El Pinar; they had arrived dead three days earlier on a cayuco carrying 131 people, one of them a 26-year-old Gambian whose family was able to watch the funeral via video call.
In addition, the Guardia Civil is investigating the death of a minor who, according to several witnesses, is believed to have been thrown overboard during the crossing on another cayuco that arrived in La Restinga on 19 October after a nine-day voyage from Senegal.
There were 145 people on board that vessel, including five women and eight children, from The Gambia, Mali, Guinea-Conakry and Senegal.
In recent years, the security forces have investigated other serious crimes committed during the crossings, including sexual assaults, murders and cases of people being thrown overboard, and some of those allegedly responsible have been brought before the courts, as the Government delegate pointed out.
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