Three migrants were found dead yesterday Saturday in a boat, south of the Canary Islands, the Spanish authorities announced.

The lifeless bodies of the three migrants were found by Coast Guard men late Saturday afternoon, in the sea area 314 kilometers south of El Hierro island, a spokesman told AFP.

Fifteen people on the same boat were rescued by helicopter and taken to El Hierro Island. Of these, some were starving or had shown symptoms of hypothermia, the same official added.

The Canary Islands archipelago, located off the coast of north-west Africa, is facing its biggest migration flows this year since 2006.

At noon on Saturday, Spain’s MKO Caminando Fronteras said at least 14 people died off the coast of Morocco when the boat they were on capsized while trying to reach the Canary Islands.

Dozens of survivors were spotted struggling to hold on to the overturned dinghy.