No fewer than seven individuals have died and numerous others are lost after a craft transporting approximately two hundred people attempting to reach Europe capsized off the coast of the Gambian coast, authorities say.
The boat overturned on Wednesday midnight in the vicinity of Jinack in the northern bank region and it was afterwards located "beached on a shoal", the country's defence ministry announced officially.
Ninety-six people were pulled to safety and a hunt is ongoing for other passengers who were traveling on the shipwrecked vessel that was heading towards the Canary Islands of Spain.
The hazardous trip over the Atlantic Ocean has emerged as a rising pathway for African migrants seeking entry into European nations.
Almost 47,000 individuals made it to the Canary Islands in last year and estimates in excess of 9,000 people have died during the journey.
Search and Rescue Efforts
In the aftermath of the disaster, the navy launched a search-and-rescue operation, using a number of military boats and a fishing vessel that joined the effort, the military said.
Officials state a number of those who died are not from The Gambia and that their details are still being checked.
The bodies of the seven individuals who drowned have been recovered, and a dozen of the saved are described as being in critical condition and undergoing emergency treatment.
A Common Migration Route
Gambia is a common pathway taken by migrants trying to reach European countries, often on hazardous voyages over water and land.
Recently, the EU has reached agreements with several North African countries designed to reducing undocumented migration.
