Two men and two women died this Thursday, April 9, in the morning, during an attempt to illegally cross the English Channel towards England, announced the mayor of Pas-de-Calais, at the scene of the accident.
The accident happened in the Equihen-Plage area, in northern France, where inflatable boats carrying irregular migrants usually leave to cross towards the United Kingdom.
These four people “tried to board a water taxi” and “the currents, which can be dangerous in this region, dragged them away”, lamented François-Xavier Lauch.
According to the mayor, the number of deaths “is still provisional”.
In addition to the fatalities, one person also had to be treated for hypothermia and suffered minor injuries, while 37 others were taken to hospital, he added.
The four people who died were adults, confirmed the Boulogne-sur-Mer prosecutor, Cécile Gressier, adding, however, that the victims’ nationalities have not yet been disclosed.
According to the prosecutor, the boat had “approximately 30 people” on board.
The water taxi technique allows smugglers to rescue migrants directly from the water to avoid security forces on land, who prevent departures from beaches.
Two migrants died on April 1 during one of these risky and often chaotic crossings, in what were the first migrant deaths at sea on the Franco-British border since the beginning of the year.
Last year, at least 29 migrants died at sea in this region, according to a count by the French news agency AFP based on official sources.
Illegal immigration to England from the north coast of France became a permanent difficulty in relations between Paris and London.
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