Three people, including 10-year-old boy, die in Channel crossing attempt

Two women and a child died aboard an overcrowded dinghy carrying 105 people. French authorities say the boat’s passengers called for rescue offshore.

The dead were a 10-year-old boy and two women in their thirties, French officials said.
The dinghy left near Sangatte with 105 people and called for help about six kilometres offshore.
A rescue ship took the passengers aboard; the dinghy had not sunk.
The prefect said the victims appeared to have been crushed in the overcrowded boat. An investigation is under way.

The dinghy left the Sangatte area at about 05:15 on Monday, 28 September. Around 08:00, passengers called for help from about six kilometres off the French coast, according to local prefect François-Xavier Lauch. The state-chartered rescue ship Ridens took them aboard at their request. A maritime emergency medical team confirmed the three deaths. ¹

The victims were identified by officials as two women in their thirties and a 10-year-old boy. Their names have not been reported. The boy’s mother and siblings were also believed to be on board, Lauch said. ¹

Lauch said the three appeared to have been crushed in the crush aboard the heavily loaded boat. That is a preliminary account, not a final finding on how they died: French authorities said the judicial investigation must establish the precise circumstances. ²

Survivors were brought to Calais in mid-morning. An AFP correspondent saw some arrive on stretchers or in wheelchairs, wrapped in emergency blankets. Prosecutor Cécile Gressier said an investigation had been opened on suspicion of involuntary manslaughter and endangerment. ¹

Three people, including 10-year-old boy, die in Channel crossing attempt

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