In order to deal with the recent influx of migrants, Malaga has granted the Red Cross an area designed by port authorities, according to local deputy prefect Miguel Briones. Many migrants that are rescued on the Andalusian coast are brought to the coastal city in southern Spain.
The area where rescued migrants will be assisted by Red Cross personnel includes a building that will be adapted for that purpose. Local authorities said they will decide whether to only renovate the building, or whether to build new installations to include more bathrooms and showers, once the tax-free public concession have been finalized. The labor and welfare ministry will fund measures for a renovation and potential new constructions.
The goal is to ensure that the Red Cross can provide ''better medical care, cultural and humanitarian assistance to people rescued'' at sea,
Samuel Linares, the head of the local chapter, said. Linares stressed the importance of formalizing the accord with port authorities in order to discuss security issues with the police and Guardia Civil so that the facility could be opened swiftly.
The Red Cross reportedly assisted a reported 2,300 migrants who reached Malaga's coasts in 2017, three times more than in 2016. The majority - over 2,176 people - were of sub-Saharan origin while the remaining migrants came from Maghreb countries, according to data provided by the organization.