Kalani Tharanga, JadeTimes Staff
D.W.G. Kalani Tharanga is a Jadetimes news reporter covering Political Blogs.
Desperate Journey Ends in Tragedy
In a devastating incident, eight migrants lost their lives while attempting to cross the English Channel from France to the UK. The migrants, hailing from Eritrea, Sudan, Syria, and Iran, were part of a group of around 60 people crammed into a rubber vessel that ran into trouble in the waters north of Boulogne sur Mer in the Pas de Calais region. Rescue services were alerted in the early hours of the morning, around 01:00 local time, but could not prevent the boat from drifting into danger. After being driven onto rocks, the vessel broke apart, leaving a trail of devastation on the beach near the town of Ambleteuse.
French emergency services arrived on the scene to treat 53 survivors, while the bodies of eight migrants were recovered. Among the survivors, six people were hospitalized, including a baby suffering from hypothermia. Sea searches did not reveal any additional victims, and the Boulogne sur Mer public prosecutor's office has launched an investigation into the tragedy.
A Growing Crisis: The Channel’s Deadly Toll
This incident is the latest in a string of migrant tragedies in the Channel, occurring just two weeks after the deadliest crossing of the year, when 12 people, including children and a pregnant woman, drowned. Despite ongoing efforts by French and UK authorities to curb these dangerous crossings, the arrival of calmer weather has led to a surge in attempts. On the day before the tragedy, 801 people successfully crossed the Channel, marking the second highest daily total this year.
Including the latest victims, 45 people have now lost their lives attempting the perilous journey across the Channel in 2024. This figure, reported by the UN’s International Organisation for Migration, is the highest number of deaths since 2021. More than 23,000 people have attempted the crossing this year, highlighting the scale of the crisis. Despite these harrowing incidents, Amnesty International UK and the Refugee Council have called for a more compassionate and comprehensive approach, emphasizing the need for safe asylum routes instead of a reliance on enforcement alone.
As authorities investigate and work to deter the dangerous crossings, the urgent need for a humane and effective solution to this growing humanitarian crisis is clearer than ever.
