Canary Islands migration surge strains rescue and police resources

A significant increase in migrant arrivals via the Atlantic route is pushing emergency services and law enforcement to their limits in the Canary Islands. In October, 6,194 people arrived in the archipelago, nearly doubling the 3,708 arrivals recorded during the first six months of the year.

Salvamento Marítimo personnel report extreme exhaustion, with some workers receiving only three hours of sleep due to constant rescue calls. Crew members on vessels like the Diphda have described the pressure of managing overloaded boats and the psychological toll of the ongoing humanitarian crisis.

National Police unions have denounced what they term “institutional abandonment,” noting that the scale of arrivals has forced the use of unprepared spaces. For example, a garage at the South Tenerife Local Police Station is being used to temporarily house adults transferred from El Hierro. Authorities have had to activate urgent devices to move migrants between islands to manage capacity.