2023-08-12 14:21:56
Update
August 12, 2023
16:21
A boat carrying migrants in the English Channel capsized killing several people, a search and rescue operation mobilized French and British resources on Saturday morning.
At least six Afghan exiles died in the English Channel after their boat sank overnight from Friday to Saturday off Sangatte (Pas-de-Calais), according to a report released by the French authorities. The search continued on Saturday to try to find between 5 and 10 passengers still missing, while 55 were taken care of by the emergency services.
The balance sheet has been reviewed down to one to two missing persons after the recount of the survivors and their testimonies, said the maritime prefecture of the Channel and the North Sea (Premar) in a press release.
The sinking boat had been spotted in the early morning by a French patrol boat, who launched the rescue, mobilizing French and British ships as well as a helicopter. The French authorities collected 37 shipwrecked people, who were taken care of at the port of Calais, while a dozen exiles rescued from the waters by the British authorities were dropped off at Dover.
Weather situation
Due to the return of favorable weather conditions, the number of departures has been very numerous since Thursday on the coast. More than 100,000 migrants have crossed the Channel illegally in small boats since 2018, a very perilous crossing, according to a count carried out on Friday by AFP from official British figures.
In 2022, five migrants died at sea and four went missing trying to reach the English coast from the northern coast of France.
In November 2021, 27 migrants died in the sinking of their boat.
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