They attempted the crossing despite the polar temperatures. More than 160 migrants who wanted to reach England were rescued at sea between Friday evening and Saturday, according to the maritime prefecture. About 50 people, who were traveling aboard the same boat “in difficulty” off Pas-de-Calais, were rescued by a Navy ship and brought back to the port of Calais, according to a press release from the maritime prefecture of the English Channel and the North Sea (Premar).
Another ship chartered by the French Navy rescued 31 other shipwrecked people in the same area, dropped off at the port of Boulogne-sur-mer. Also engaged off the coast of Calais, a customs coastguard boat picked up and brought back to the quay 45 other migrants. Finally, a canoe from the national sea rescue company (SNSM) assisted 40 people in difficulty off Oye-Plage and spotted by the Cross Gris Nez (Regional Operational Center for Surveillance and Rescue).
A memory in 2022
The maritime route between France and England is one of the busiest in the world, “with more than 400 commercial ships passing through it per day and the weather conditions are often difficult”, according to Premar. However, more and more exiles attempt the crossing. More than 40,000 migrants arrived in the UK after crossing the Channel in small boats in 2022, a record.
On Wednesday, a shipwreck off Dover claimed the lives of at least four people, just over a year after the tragic one of November 24, 2021, in which 27 people died.