Canary Islands President Clavijo demands urgent contingency plan from Spanish Government

Canary Islands President Fernando Clavijo has sent a formal letter to Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez demanding an urgent contingency plan following a significant surge in migration via the Atlantic route. During October, 3,814 migrants arrived in the archipelago by sea, with 2,776 of those landings occurring on the island of El Hierro.

Clavijo has proposed six urgent measures to address the situation, including the extraordinary convocation of the Canary Islands-State Security Board, increased resources for Maritime Rescue (Salvamento Marítimo), and enhanced coordination between regional, state, and European Union administrations. He emphasized that the previous decline in arrivals did not signal the end of the migratory route and noted that intelligence reports from July had already suggested a potential reactivation.

To alleviate the immediate pressure on El Hierro, the Government Delegation in the Canary Islands recently transferred 471 migrants to reception centers in Gran Canaria via a chartered ferry. The surge has placed intense strain on local healthcare and temporary reception facilities, particularly in El Hierro and Lanzarote.