At least four migrants die, dozens rescued in latest Channel crossing tragedy

At least four people have died after a small boat packed with migrants capsized in freezing temperatures in the English Channel overnight.

Archive photograph of a lifeboat on the southeast coast of Britain with migrants picked up at sea while attempting to cross the English Channel in June, 2022. © Ben Stansall/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

According to French and UK emergency services, dozens of others were plucked from the waters in a large-scale rescue operation in the early hours of Wednesday morning.  

British interior minister Suella Braverman said the fatalities – and the loss of 27 lives in November last year – were a "sobering reminder" of the need to cut off the cross-Channel route.

Promising closer cooperation with the French authorities, Braverman told parliament, "Crossing the Channel in unseaworthy vessels is lethally dangerous.

"It is for this reason above all that we are trying to destroy the business model of the people smugglers," she added.

Ce matin, au moins quatre personnes sont mortes noyées dans la Manche. Une nouvelle fois, les secours sont intervenus trop tard. Les gouvernements français et britanniques doivent être tenus pour responsables et des voies de passages sûres doivent s'ouvrir maintenant !

— Utopia 56 (@Utopia_56) December 14, 2022

Distress call

However, the NGO Refugee Action said the deaths were "predictable and avoidable," blaming the UK government for not making safe routes available.

43 people were reportedly rescued, including more than 30 who had fallen overboard, amid fears the death toll will rise.

According to the Utopia 56 group that helps migrants in northern France,  they received a voice message and location notification from a boat in distress at 01h53 UT.

The message was then forwarded to the French and British coastguards by phone.

By 02h40 UT, the French coastguard confirmed that the British were handling the situation.

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Rescue operation

The UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) coordinated the rescue operation, which also involved Border Force, police and other emergency responders.

At least four deaths have been confirmed as a result of the incident so far.

The MCA said at least four lifeboats and three coastguard rescue teams were dispatched, as well as two coastguard helicopters. 

French officials provided a helicopters and a navy patrol boat.

A record 43,000 migrants have made the journey across the Channel so far this year, creating tensions between London and Paris about tougher preventative measures.

Freezing weather conditions in northern Europe and high winds on the Channel have deterred crossings in recent days.

However, a drop in the wind appears to have prompted the latest attempt, despite increased risks of hypothermia during freezing winter temperatures.