In a tragic turn of events, one person died and another was seriously injured off the French coast as almost 300 people crossed the English Channel in small boats on Friday. The Home Office reported that 292 migrants made the journey across seven boats, the first recorded arrivals since 3 December when 118 people crossed the channel. Over 29,000 people have made the crossing in 2021, with last year’s total standing at 45,774.
On Friday, more than sixty people were onboard a boat in distress about 8km from the French coast when it partially deflated, as confirmed by the French coastguard. French-led operations quickly rescued the first group of people who were pulled from the water at 01.15 local time, with 66 people rescued in total within an hour. One person did not survive the ordeal, and another was taken to a Calais hospital in a serious condition.
In August of 2021, six people died after a boat carrying migrants sank off the French coast. Additionally, in November of the same year, at least 27 migrants died when a dinghy sank while heading to the UK from France, marking the highest recorded number of deaths from a single incident. Following Friday’s incident, Home Secretary James Cleverly took to social media, concluding that “the incident in the Channel last night is a horrific reminder of the people smugglers’ brutality. 25,000 people have been averted from crossing this year – but we must and will do more.”
As of now, several organisations and individuals continue to make efforts to help asylum seekers stuck in limbo due to border problems, including charities, local governments, and private citizens. As the world continues to watch, the fight continues to find a solution to this crisis, with progress hopefully on the horizon
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