Police found a would-be migrant hidden in a sack of toxic waste at the port in Spain’s Melilla enclave on Morocco’s northern coast, police said Monday.
The discovery was made on Friday when a person was found unconscious in a sealed plastic bag containing flue ash, a by-product of burning coal which is classed as toxic under European waste laws.
The officer who made the discovery first noticed a shape like a human leg and immediately called an ambulance after initially thinking he had come across a dead body.
For all the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
But after being removed from the sack, the person regained consciousness and was saved.
Police discovered a total of 41 migrants at the port trying to illegally board boats to the Spanish mainland on Friday, hidden in lorries and other vehicles.
A number were hidden in containers full of broken glass for recycling and had suffered “multiple cuts,” police said.
Last year, more than 41,000 migrants entered Spain illegally by land and sea, about 30 percent more than in 2019.
A file photo shows migrant arrives at the Port of Arguineguin after being rescued by the Spanish coast guard in the Canary Island of Gran Canaria on November 23, 2020. (Desiree Martin/AFP)
More than half of them landed on the Canary Islands after a perilous sea crossing which last year saw the number of arrivals soar eightfold.
Read more:
Hundreds of migrants rescued by Spanish-flagged boat in Mediterranean
Four migrants die en route to Spain’s Canary Islands
Migrant arrivals increased as people looked for alternative routes to reach Europe due to increased patrolling of the Mediterranean Sea.
Over the same period, around 1,500 migrants reached Melilla, one of two Spanish enclaves on the northern coast Morocco which represent the land borders the European Union has with Africa.
Both are popular destinations for migrants seeking to enter Europe illegally, with migrants regularly trying to scale the border fence or reach them by swimming along the coast.
Also Read
-
Italy coastguard rescues 47 migrants after ship capsizes off Lampedusa island
The Italian coastguard said on Saturday it had rescued 47 migrants after their ship capsized 15 miles south of the Italian island of Lampedusa.The ... World News -
Libya coastguard rescues over 1,500 migrants off coast in week
Libya has rescued more than 1,500 would-be migrants off its west coast in the past week, a non-governmental organization said.“The Libyan coastguard ... North Africa -
Over 800 EU-bound Libyan migrants intercepted by navy: UN agency
Hundreds of Europe-bound migrants were intercepted in the Mediterranean sea off Libya’s coasts and taken into detention over the last 24 hours, the UN ... North Africa -
Four migrants die en route to Spain’s Canary Islands
Four migrants died during a perilous journey from the coast of Africa to Spain’s Canary Islands, which last year registered a huge surge in arrivals, ... World News
