MADRID: Spain and Italy struggled to cope on Wednesday with a huge surge of African immigrants, plucking more than 2,300 people from flimsy vessels in just 24 hours as they made desperate attempts to reach the shores of southern Europe.
Enticed by a spell of calm weather, the number of Africans risking their lives on dinghies has surged to unprecedented levels, officials said.
Spain's government said it was sending nearly 500 police reinforcements to cope with the flow.
The Spanish maritime rescue services said it had picked up 920 people including 26 children from the Gibraltar Strait on Tuesday, and another 10 men trying to reach Spain on a dinghy on Wednesday morning.
The Italian Navy said nearly 1,400 immigrants, many without life vests, had been rescued from the Mediterranean in 24 hours.
That brings the total to more than 98,000 rescued this year, said Italian senior immigration official Mario Morcone.
"These are people coming to Italy not for tourism but out of desperation. Many of them continue to lose their lives in these crossings despite our efforts," he told Italian radio Anch'io.
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