Child dies in horrific Channel crossing incident as small boat continues journey to UK

A child has died after falling off a small boat crossing the English Channel. The youngster, whose age has not yet been confirmed, is said to have fallen from an overcrowded dinghy into the freezing waters before the vessel continued its journey towards the UK.

The horrific incident on Sunday morning followed two Somali women dying in similar circumstances on Saturday as the small boat crisis continues despite Labour pledging to bring it to an end. Of the latest death, Cécile Gressier, prosecutor in the French port town of Boulogne-sur-Mer, said the child's body washed up on nearby Écault beach.

The circumstances of the child's death, and washing ashore like flotsam from the ocean, have chilling echoes of the death of three-year-old Syrian migrant boy Alan Kurdi, whose body was famously washed up on a beach in Turkey a decade ago sparking global outrage. Ms Gressier said: "An investigation has been opened to determine the circumstances of the death. The victim's age and nationality have not been determined."

Some sources at the scene suggested that the deceased was a young teenager. Emergency services commander Jonathan Caruso said 48 other migrants who were on the same boat were rescued after falling into the sea, before the dinghy 'continued on to England,' with around 50 still onboard.

The latest death means that at least 21 people have died this year as they attempt to reach Britain from France on a small boat. The two Somali women migrants died on Saturday, off the coast near Neufchâtel-Hardelot, south of Boulogne-sur-Mer.

The number of migrants arriving in the UK is at a record for this point in the year since data on Channel crossings was first reported in 2018. Last year, 50 people died while trying to cross the Channel, according to incidents recorded by the French coastguard, in what is considered the deadliest year since the crisis unfolded.

The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) has also reported several more migrant deaths believed to be linked to crossing attempts in 2024 and this year.

The worst tragedy of this kind came in November 2021, when 27 migrants died after a dinghy sank while heading to the UK - the highest recorded number of deaths from a single incident.

More than 32,000 people have arrived in the UK after crossing the English Channel by small boat so far this year.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron have pledged to 'strengthen cooperation' to fight the people smugglers, but they are regularly criticised for not doing enough.

Sir Keir claimed authorities had "massively increased" the number of migrants who are removed from the UK, if they are deemed not to have a right to be in the country. Referring to a one in, one out returns agreement with France, Sir Keir said he wanted "to ramp that up".

Six people have been removed to the France under the deal, including an Afghan and a Somali who were sent to the continent on Thursday morning.

Asked if he will have failed in his pledge to "smash the gangs" if 2025 ends up being a record year for small boat arrivals in Kent, the Prime Minister told ITV Meridian: "We have to smash the gangs, and it is a serious issue. I understand people's concern about this."