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Four people die in Channel crossing attempt, French authorities say
French authorities said the victims were swept away by strong currents as rescue teams saved at least 42 others from the small boat.
- On Thursday, four people died after a small migrant 'taxi-boat' sank in the English Channel off Boulogne, French local authorities confirmed. The victims included two men and two women.
- Authorities refer to these vessels as 'taxi-boats,' with traffickers increasingly picking up migrants along French and Belgian coasts to evade intensified patrols, according to EU border agency Frontex spokesperson Chris Borowski.
- Data from the University of Oxford's Migration Observatory shows 41,500 people crossed the Channel last year, while approximately 2,200 migrants made the journey in the first two months of 2026.
- Emergency services rescued approximately 30 survivors from the water and treated them on the beach in Équihen-Plage after the early morning incident during an attempt to reach Britain.
- France recently rejected a British proposal to deploy British Border Force vessels to intercept small boats, revealing ongoing friction in bilateral cooperation efforts to prevent crossings.
79 Articles
79 Articles
Four migrants drown in Channel boat attempt off Calais
French authorities said that at least four people, two men and two women, died on Thursday as they were trying to board an inflatable boat to attempt the perilous sea crossing from northern France to the UK.
Two women and two men died on Thursday 9 April, 40 kilometres west of Calais. They were trying to climb in a pneumatic boat for England. With the mild weather, the crossings have resumed in recent days, despite an arsenal of surveillance in constant progression.
Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer
Washington Times4 dead, 38 rescued during attempted channel crossing from France to U.K.
French authorities say at least four people died while trying to board an inflatable boat for a dangerous sea crossing from northern France to the U.K. The prefect of the Pas-de-Calais region said Thursday that 38 others were rescued including…
Two men and two women drowned on Thursday morning during an attempt to cross the English Channel in the area of Equihen-Plage, Pas-de-Calais.
Four migrants die trying to cross Channel to England
Four people died on Thursday off the coast of northern France as they tried to board a small boat to cross the Channel to England, taking the number of such deaths this year to six. France has long been a launchpad for migrants hoping to cross the Channel and start a better life in Britain, usually risking the journey in flimsy, overcrowded vessels.
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