An incident occurred near the French port of Dunkirk, according to local authorities
The French maritime prefecture said that a dinghy was spotted at around 6am this morning near the Braek breakwater, near the French port of Dunkirk, with three unresponsive people found onboard. They were transferred to a lifeboat by Calais’s fire and rescue service where they were confirmed dead.
Another man has reportedly died in the Pas-de-Calais after attempting to reach the UK on a small boat. The mayor of Neufchâtel-Hardelot, Paulette Julien-Peuvion, told French newspaper La Voix du Nord that the man was thought to be between 30 and 49 years old and originally from Africa.
The tragedy happened as he tried to board a “taxi-boat” between Hardelot beach and the dunes of Mont Saint-Frieux, in Dannes, and the boat then capsized at around 11:30pm, the paper reported.
The boat was reportedly under the surveillance of a French rescue ship and got into trouble after taking on too many migrants at Saint-Cécile. Six other people were also taken to hospital after nearly drowning, and man with burns was airlifted to an emergency medical centre.
Wednesday was the busiest day for Channel crossings so far this year after 752 migrants arrived in the UK, Home Office figures show.
French police were filmed yesterday on Hardelot beach, south of Boulogne, watching on as dozens of people boarded a dinghy destined for the UK. French officers are not allowed to intervene when migrants are in the water or boarding the boats due to the risk of drowning.
The size of the rubber dinghies has increased significantly as smugglers adapt to increased police activity on French beaches. Larger boats now “taxi” around the coast of France and wait to pick up people slightly offshore, rather than launching from the sand.
A record 128 migrants arrived in one dinghy this month, up from the previous record of 125 in September last year.
In April, the UK agreed to pay France extra cash to police its shores. A £662m deal was agreed for the next three years, with around £160m of this money to be spent on new tactics such as policing to stop “taxi boats”.
The £160m tranche is conditional on the success of the French operation. The UK will pay around £501m for more officers on the beaches of northern France and more surveillance technology, despite a previous boost in funding failing to bring the number of Channel crossings down.
Charities warned that extra enforcement would push more people to flee to the UK and could lead to more deaths.
Sydney Sopher, chief operations officer at Care4Calais, called on new prime minister Andy Burnham to open “safe routes for refugees to claim asylum” to stop deaths in the Channel. She added: “The evidence from the Ukrainian visa scheme shows that safe routes stop crossings, and it saves live. Burnham should get on with opening safe routes – now.”
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said the deaths were a “preventable tragedy”. He added: “The only way to save lives is to stop the crossings completely. And the only way we can stop the crossings is by having a proper deterrent.”
He claimed that asylum hotels and financial support in the UK were causing people to make the dangerous journeys.
A government spokesperson said: “We are deeply saddened to hear about these deaths.
“Every death in the Channel is a tragedy and a stark reminder of the dangers posed by criminal gangs exploiting vulnerable people for profit. We will continue working relentlessly with the French and our partners overseas to prevent these perilous journeys.
“The French authorities are leading the response and investigation into this incident.”