Channel: 292 migrants rescued at sea on Tuesday as they tried to reach England – franceinfo

The Channel crossings continue to cause shipwrecked people. A total of 292 migrants, who were trying to reach England in boats, were rescued and brought back to the French coast on Tuesday, November 2, the maritime prefecture announced on Wednesday.

In the night from Monday to Tuesday, “the Gris-Nez operational surveillance and rescue center (Cross) is informed that many boats are in difficulty off the coast of Nord and Pas-de-Calais”, explains in a press release the prefecture of the Channel and the North Sea, which specifies that “the operations continued during the day of November 2”.

In particular, a French Navy intervention tug recovered 108 castaways on board during three separate rescue operations. Thirty-two other castaways were rescued during an intervention by the National Society for Rescue at Sea (SNSM) of Dunkirk. For its part, the Calais SNSM rescued 33 migrants during another intervention.

At the same time, an operation by the Dunkirk port security brigade brought aid to 36 shipwrecked people. A coastal surveillance boat from the maritime gendarmerie also rescued and recovered 34 people on board. Finally, a customs coast guard patroller rescued 49 castaways during two interventions.

Since the end of 2018, illegal crossings of the Channel by migrants seeking to reach the United Kingdom have increased despite repeated warnings from the authorities who highlight the danger linked to the density of traffic, strong currents and the low temperature of the water.