Four dead after migrant dinghy sinks in English Channel off northern France

PARIS – Four people died after a small boat carrying migrants attempting to cross from France to Britain sank in the English Channel, prompting a search-and-rescue operation off the coast south of Calais, the authorities said on April 9.

The boat was carrying about 30 people, a local mayor said, when it ran into trouble at about 7am local time, between the beaches of Equihen and Ecault.

Speaking to Reuters, Equihen Mayor Christian Fourcroy said: “Around 30 migrants tried to board the boat. Things went wrong and, let’s just say, they floundered in the water. Among them were two women and two men who died.”

The situation was still being assessed and the casualty toll could rise, the local authorities said.

Over the past year, traffickers seeking to evade police have increasingly used inflatable dinghies – dubbed “taxi-boats” by the authorities – to cruise along the coasts off northern France and Belgium, picking up migrants from along the shore.

The Boulogne prosecutor has opened an investigation into the incident, a police source said.

More than 4,700 crossed Channel between Jan 1 and April 4

Some 4,776 migrants crossed the Channel, one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes, between Jan 1 and April 4, according to UK government data. About 41,500 people crossed it in 2025.

The influx of migrants has helped drive support for the Reform UK party led by Mr Nigel Farage, a right-wing populist and long-time immigration hardliner. In France, far-right leader Marine Le Pen’s National Rally party has become the single-biggest party in Parliament on the back of a tough anti-immigration stance.

In 2025, Britain and France agreed on a “one in, one out” scheme, under which migrants arriving in Britain by small boat can be returned to France, with an equal number allowed to enter Britain via a legal route. The measure aims to deter dangerous and illegal crossings from France. REUTERS