Four dead in Channel crossing attempt

31/10/2024 6:03

        One person died in his attempt
        to cross the Channel in a dinghy to Britain, the French
        coastguard said on Wednesday, while the bodies of three other
        migrants were found at a beach, according to media reports.
        
        France's Regional Operational Centre for Surveillance and
        Rescue (CROSS) dispatched a rescue vessel and a French Navy
        helicopter after reports of people struggling in the water
        between Hardelot and Équihen-Plage on Wednesday morning.
        
        Rescuers airlifted around 15 people to safety, but one
        individual was declared dead despite emergency efforts.
        
        On Wednesday afternoon, three bodies were found at nearby
        beaches, local media franceinfo and La Voix Du Nord reported.
        They cited a local prosecutor as saying an investigation was
        opened to establish a possible link with the earlier drowning.
        
        The public prosecutor's office in Boulogne-Sur-Mer did
        not immediately reply to a Reuters request for comment.
        
        Several dozen migrants have died this year in their
        efforts to cross the Channel in unfit and overloaded boats
        despite strong currents in what is one of the world's busiest
        shipping lanes.