Migrant crisis: More attempt fatal journey the day after deadly crossing took 27 lives

A group of people thought to be migrants are brought in to Dover, Kent, following a small boat incident in the Channel after 27 people died yesterday in the worst-recorded migrant tragedy in the Channel.
A group of people thought to be migrants are brought in to Dover, Kent, following a small boat incident in the Channel after 27 people died yesterday in the worst-recorded migrant tragedy in the Channel.
Gareth Fuller
Max Parry

By Max Parry


Published: 25/11/2021

- 08:10

Updated: 14/02/2023

- 11:57

The RNLI has rescued another group of migrants this morning, the day after a boat capsized in the Channel

More people making the perilous journey across the Channel have been brought ashore following the deadliest day of the current migrant crisis.

A group of people wearing life jackets and wrapped in blankets were seen huddled together on board an RNLI lifeboat before disembarking in Dover on Thursday morning, just a day after a dinghy capsized off the coast of Calais, causing the loss of dozens of lives.


French interior minister Gerald Darmanin said the loss of 27 lives was an “absolute tragedy” as he blamed human trafficking gangs who promised people the “El Dorado of England” for a large fee.

Boris Johnson called on France to agree to joint police patrols along the French Channel coast, while French politicians pointed the finger at UK authorities for failing to tackle the issue.

The Prime Minister spoke to President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday evening in the wake of the worst incident of its kind in the Channel since the current migrant crisis began.

Downing Street said they had agreed to “keep all options on the table” in their efforts to break up the human trafficking gangs responsible for putting desperate people at risk in one of the world’s busiest sea lanes.

And Mr Darmanin told French radio network RTL that the smugglers are “criminals, people who exploit the misery of others, of women and children – there were pregnant women, children who died yesterday on that boat… and for a few thousand euros they promise them ‘El Dorado in England’.

“And, sadly, this has been repeated every day for the last 20 years.”

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