A minimum of seven people have perished and a significant number remain unaccounted for after a craft ferrying about 200 migrants seeking to enter European shores sank near the shoreline of the Gambian coast, officials state.
The vessel capsized on Wednesday midnight close to the village of Jinack in the North Bank area and it was later found "beached on a shoal", the country's defence ministry announced officially.
Nearly one hundred people have been saved to date and a hunt is ongoing for the remaining passengers who were on board the sunken boat that was bound for the Canary Islands of Spain.
The dangerous voyage over the the Atlantic has emerged as a rising pathway for migrants from Africa seeking entry into the EU.
Almost forty-seven thousand migrants made it to the Spanish archipelago in last year and estimates over 9,000 people have died during the journey.
Search and Rescue Efforts
In the aftermath of the disaster, the navy initiated a rescue mission, using multiple navy ships and a commercial fishing craft that came to assist, the defence ministry confirmed.
Reports indicate a number of those who died are not from The Gambia and that their nationalities are still under confirmation.
The remains of the seven victims who drowned have been recovered, and a dozen of the saved are described as being in serious condition and getting immediate medical attention.
A Common Migration Route
Gambia is one of the routes used by asylum seekers trying to reach the EU, typically through dangerous journeys over water and land.
Over the past few years, the European bloc has reached agreements with several North African countries designed to limiting illegal migration.
