The U.K. government said on Wednesday that at least four people perished after a tiny boat reportedly filled with migrants sank in frigid conditions in the English Channel overnight. Dozens more people were retrieved from the seas of one of the world’s busiest shipping channels by British and French emergency services as part of a massive rescue effort.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of the United Kingdom referred to it as a “tragic loss of human life” as he attempts to tighten regulations to prevent a record number of migrants from making the crossing.
Earlier, British media reported that 43 people, including more than 30 who had fallen overboard, were recovered, with worries that the death toll might increase.
In the Channel, migrants have been detained on a regular basis in recent years, utilising inadequately equipped tiny boats.
On November 24 of last year, at least 27 people perished while trying to cross the English Channel in a dinghy.
Since 2014, the International Organization for Migration estimates that 205 migrants have gone missing in the English Channel.
At 2:53 a.m. local time, Utopia 56, an organisation assisting refugees in northern France, got a voice message and GPS alert from a boat in difficulty, according to Nikolai Posner (8:53 p.m. Eastern).
“We forwarded it to the French and British coastguard by phone. At 3:40 a.m., the French coastguard told us the British were handling it,” he told AFP. “The location that was sent to us was in French waters. At 2:59 a.m. the person who contacted us was no longer receiving messages on WhatsApp.”
Posner said that he could not be certain that the communication came from the same little boat.
The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) of the United Kingdom managed the rescue mission, which also included Border Force, British police, and other emergency services.
At 3:07 a.m. British time, lifeboats were launched from the Channel port of Dover, followed by vessels from Ramsgate and Hastings along the coast.
A government official said, at 03:05 today, authorities were notified of an incident involving a distressed migrant boat in the English Channel.
“After a coordinated search and rescue operation led by HM Coastguard, it is with regret that there have been four confirmed deaths as a result of this incident, investigations are ongoing and we will provide further information in due course.”
The MCA said that at least four lifeboats, three coastguard rescue teams, and two coastguard helicopters were despatched. A nearby fishing vessel also assisted. The French government sent a helicopter and a patrol boat.
In recent years, the frequency with which tens of thousands of migrants try to cross the English Channel from northern France to southern England in tiny boats has increased dramatically.
This year, a record 43,000 migrants have crossed the English Channel, causing tensions between London and Paris on preventive measures.
The event on Wednesday occurred the day after Britain’s prime minister, Sunak, announced a new agreement with Albania to reduce the number of migrants crossing the English Channel to continental Europe.
Almost 13,000 Albanians have arrived in British seas this year, representing one-third of all migrants.
According to the agreement, Albanians arriving by boat over the English Channel would be deported promptly to their own country.
In recent days, freezing temperatures in northern Europe and windy conditions on the English Channel have prevented crossings, but a reduction in the wind seems to have encouraged the current effort.
Migrant relief organisations in France said that winter circumstances increased the hazards of illegally crossing the English Channel.
“Crossings are even more difficult in winter,” said Utopia 56’s Posner. “The cold makes a difference if people fall overboard, the survival time in the water is much lower.”
The danger of fatal hypothermia was “extremely high” after someone entered the water, he added.
»Boat capsizes in freezing waters between U.K. and France leaves at 4 people dead«