From the sky, NGO searches for west African migrant boats in distress

Off the coast of the Canary Islands: Every hour is crucial when searching for distressed west African migrant boats in the Atlantic, where the long ro...

Off the coast of the Canary Islands: Every hour is crucial when searching for distressed west African migrant boats in the Atlantic, where the long route and harsh weather easily spell disaster, a nonprofit that conducts aerial surveillance told AFP during a recent mission.

AFP rode along with the organisation Humanitarian Pilots Initiative (HPI) as it raced to locate several missing pirogues -- long, rickety canoes -- that had left The Gambia but never showed up at their final destination.

The mission: search an area larger than Switzerland, from hundreds of metres (yards) in the air, with an aim of rendering aid before it is too late.

"People could be dead or dying from dehydration, heat stroke or any other conditions," pilot Omar El Manfalouty told AFP.

Migrants departing from west Africa and travelling up the Atlantic are usually trying to reach Europe via the Canary Islands off northwest Africa.