MADRID — A newborn baby was recently delivered at sea, lying on personal belongings inside a rubber dinghy filled with migrants from Africa wearing winter jackets.
The image shared by Spain’s maritime rescue service on Wednesday showcased the dramatic rescue of the infant and others on board who undertook a dangerous journey across the Atlantic Ocean to reach the Canary Islands in Spain.

While many in Spain were observing the Epiphany holiday on Monday, the crew of the Guardamar Talía rescue vessel found individuals stranded in a small rubber boat. This boat was transporting not just the newborn and the mother but also other passengers who risked their lives in hopes of reaching Europe.

An aerial photograph captured the moment, revealing the baby, presumed mother, and numerous men and women tightly packed into the vessel, so crowded that some of them were perched on the edges.

The captain of the rescue ship, Domingo Trujillo, has prior experience with such emergencies, having successfully managed a similar rescue operation in 2020, which involved the safe delivery of a baby born in transit, according to reports from the maritime service.

Last year, Spain saw more than 61,000 individuals arriving illegally by sea, as reported by the Interior Ministry. Of this total, approximately 46,000 made landfall in the Canary Islands, which lie 95 kilometers (59 miles) from Morocco. Among these arrivals were thousands of unaccompanied minors.

The International Organization for Migration has documented around 5,000 fatalities associated with this migration path since it began tracking such data in 2014. However, the Spanish migration advocacy group Caminando Fronteras (Walking Borders) claims that the actual number of deaths is likely greater, estimating that over 10,000 individuals died or disappeared while attempting to cross the route last year alone.