Two boats attempted to reach the United Kingdom by crossing the Channel this Saturday. Four people died, crushed in the boats, including a child.
“The smugglers have the blood of these people on their hands,” criticizes Bruno Retailleau. The Minister of the Interior reacts to a new tragedy that occurred this Saturday, October 5 in the Channel. Four migrants, including a two-year-old child, died trying to reach the United Kingdom by boat.
Today several people have died trying to cross the Channel. A child was trampled to death in a boat. Terrible drama which must make us all aware of the tragedy that is playing out. The smugglers have the blood of these people on their hands and our
— Bruno Retailleau (@BrunoRetailleau) October 5, 2024
The child died “by suffocation”, crushed in the boat after a stampede, “buried under other people”, explained Jacques Billant, prefect of Pas-de-Calais, during a press conference. The overloaded boat requested assistance on Saturday morning, reporting one injured person, in addition to the deceased child. Rescuers recovered 14 people on board. The other passengers on the boat continued the crossing.
The other three victims were part of another boat, which was trying to reach the United Kingdom. These are two men and a woman “all three around 30 years old”, who died “probably crushed, probably suffocated and drowned in the 40 cm of water at the bottom of the inflatable boat”, indicated Jacques Billant . The public prosecutor of Boulogne-sur-Mer, Guirec Le Bras, announced that an investigation had been opened for “aggravated manslaughter” and “criminal conspiracy”, indicates Franceinfo.
2024 is already the deadliest year in seven years
On the boats used by migrants to attempt the crossing, the prosecutor denounces to the press the absence of a floor, useful for stabilizing the boat. “So that you have kinds of pockets of water which are gradually formed when water enters the boat. Between panic movements and people who can fall, you have several phenomena which can be at the origin of death”, detailed Guirec Le Bras.
The year 2024 is the deadliest since the beginning of the phenomenon of Channel crossings by inflatable boats in 2018, reports BFMTV. There were 46 deaths in 2024 before the events of this Saturday, compared to 12 in 2023. “Since September, we have had 25 deaths,” laments Guirec Le Bras. And added: “It clearly shows how dangerous the crossings are,” with boats that have not increased in size, while the number of migrants attempting the crossing is growing. According to the prosecutor, the boats went from 30 passengers to more than 65 on average.