4 die trying to cross Channel to UK in freezing cold
Four migrants died overnight and a fifth was in critical condition on Sunday after trying to reach Britain from northern France in freezing temperatures, the French maritime authority said. About 70 migrants, including small children, were rescued, said a source familiar with the situation. The fatalities were the first reported migrant deaths on the Channel in 2024. The group was attempting to reach a vessel off the resort town of Wimereux when their small boat got into difficulty, the maritime prefecture said. "We have four dead migrants and one migrant in a critical condition at the hospital in Boulogne-sur-Mer," a spokeswoman for the maritime prefecture said. The crew of a French tow vessel, the Abeille Normandie, went to the rescue and spotted "unconscious and lifeless people" in the water, the official said, estimating the water temperature to be around nine degrees Celsius. The survivors were taken to Calais. According to one person, who spoke on condition of anonymity, around 70 migrants were brought in, including "entire families with children, some of them very young". Jean-Claude Lenoir, head of the Salam association, said migrants took huge risks by trying to board bigger vessels in the water in the current conditions. "Migrants want to get on board at all costs," he told AFP. "They quickly fall victim to hypothermia or drowning." In December, two migrants died in two separate incidents as they attempted to cross the Channel. (AFP)