A view of the HMS Sutherland. British forces intercepted a sanctioned oil tanker belonging to Russia’s shadow fleet, which was supported by aircraft, including Chinook helicopters and navy vessels such as the frigate HMS Sutherland. Image used for representation purpose only.

French gendarme used a tractor to pull a damaged migrants’ boat after a failed attempt to cross the English Channel that led to the death of 8 people near the beach of Ambleteuse, northern France on September 15, 2024.
| Photo Credit: AFP

At least eight people died during a failed attempt to cross the English Channel from northern France, French maritime authorities said on Sunday (September 15, 2024).

The incident occurred on Saturday (September 14, 2024) just before midnight when authorities spotted a boat, carrying dozens, in distress near a beach in the northern town of Ambleteuse.

A French rescue ship was deployed to the area and rescue services offered medical assistance to 53 migrants on the beach, a statement from the French maritime authorities in charge of the Channel and the North Sea said.

“Despite the emergency care provided, eight people have died,” the statement said.

No people were discovered during the search at sea, it added.

Six people were taken to hospital “in relative emergency,” including a 10-month-old baby with hypothermia, Jacques Billant, the Pas-de-Calais prefect, told French media on Sunday. He said survivors of the accident come from Eritrea, Sudan, Syria, Afghanistan, Egypt and Iran.

Survivors of the tragedy have been taken to the sports hall in Ambleteuse, according to a statement from the prefecture of Pas-de-Calais region. Prosecutor’s office in Boulogne-sur-mer has opened an investigation into the accident.

The incident on Saturday occurred nearly two weeks after a boat carrying migrants ripped apart in the English Channel as they attempted to reach Britain from northern France, plunging dozens into the treacherous waterway and leaving 12 dead, officials said.

British officials were quick to express sadness over another English Channel incident.

“It’s awful,’’ Foreign Secretary David Lammy told the BBC. “It’s a further loss of life.”

The new Labour Party government has pledged to crack down on criminal gangs plying the channel trade and had discussed with European partners “how we go after those gangs, in co-operation upstream.’’

Europe’s increasingly strict asylum rules, growing xenophobia and hostile treatment of migrants have been pushing them north. Before Saturday’s accident, at least 43 migrants had died or gone missing while trying to cross to the U.K. this year, according to the International Organization for Migration.

Other surveillance and rescue operations are underway on Sunday along the entire Pas-de-Calais coast amid stormy weather conditions and agitated sea, French maritime authorities said. They warned anyone who tries to cross the Channel on flimsy and overloaded boats and in often difficult weather conditions of “significant risks.”

On Saturday, French coast guard and navy vessels rescued 200 people from the treacherous waters in the Pas-de-Calais area, according to a report sent by French maritime authorities in charge of the Channel and the North Sea.

They said they observed 18 attempts of boat departures from France to Britain on Saturday.

In July, four migrants died while attempting the crossing on an inflatable boat that capsized and punctured. Five others, including a child, died in another attempt in April. Five dead were recovered from the sea or found washed up along a beach after a migrant boat ran into difficulties in the dark and winter cold of January.

Jiya Rai, a 16-year-old from Mumbai with Autism Spectrum Disorder, has become the world’s youngest and fastest para swimmer to cross the English Channel, a feat which she accomplished on July 28-29.

Ms Rai swam the English Channel from Abbot’s Cliff in England to Pointe de la Courte-Dune in France in a time of 17 hours and 25 minutes between July 28 and 29, covering a distance of 34 kilometres.

She is the daughter of Madan Rai, the MC-at-Arms serving in Mumbai. The Western Naval Command (WNC) congratulated the young para swimmer on her feat.

“All personnel of WNC convey their heartiest congratulations to Jiya Rai for becoming the world’s youngest and fastest female para swimmer to successfully swim solo across the English Channel,” the Western Naval Command (IN_WNC) wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

@SwimmerJiya does it again!

All personnel of WNC convey their heartiest congratulations to Ms Jiya Rai for becoming the world’s youngest and fastest female para swimmer to successfully swim solo across the English Channel.@SpokespersonMoD@MoHFW_INDIA@HQ_IDS_Indiahttps://t.co/38gFKSrFtfpic.twitter.com/ECh6zmrzRF

— Western Naval Command (@IN_WNC) July 29, 2024

“Jiya, a 16-year-old girl with Autism Spectrum disorder, is the daughter of Madan Rai, MC-at-Arms, serving at Mumbai. She has many inspiring achievements to her credit, including swimming across the Palk Bay earlier,” the WNC added.

Despite her disabilities, she is on a mission to become the world’s first and youngest para swimmer to swim seven oceans.

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a neurological and developmental condition, which affects how people interact with others, communicate, learn and behave.

In December 2022, she swam 1,100 kilometres as a part of a six-member relay team from Mumbai to Goa and back to Vasai Fort in 11 days, 22 hours and 13 minutes, becoming the youngest and only female participant of the team.

According to WNC, Ms Rai has swam across the Palk Strait from Talaimannar (Sri Lanka) to Dhanuskodi (India) covering a distance of 29 kilometres in a world record time of 13 hours and 10 minutes on March 20, 2022.

With this, she had become the world’s youngest and fastest female to swim across the Palk Strait.

Ms Rai was mentioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his ‘Mann Ki Baat’ episode on February 18, 2021, and her records have been registered in the Asia Book of Records and India Book of Records.

She has also won medals in national and state open-water sea swimming championships.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)