Ceuta migrant crisis strains resources as volunteers charge refugees' phones

Volunteer Saida Lakrouss, an Arabic translator from Ceuta, has set up an improvised charging station at Playa del Trampolín, offering power and Wi‑Fi to migrants whose phones were damaged by sea water. She says a few percent of battery can let them call their families and confirm they are alive.

At the same time, Ceuta is confronting an acute migrant‑minor emergency. Government sources say more than 600 unaccompanied minors have been transferred to the Spanish mainland since September 2025, pushing the enclave's capacity to over 2,600% of its critical limit. Ceuta's president, Juan José Vivas, warned that about 1,100 minors are currently being cared for, far beyond normal capacity. Regional authorities in the Basque Country, Catalonia, Valencia and Galicia have voiced concerns and called for the redistribution of the children, citing overwhelmed local services.

The dual situation highlights both the humanitarian needs on the ground and the political tension over how Spain's autonomous communities will share responsibility for the influx.