The doomed dinghy crammed with dozens of migrants was little more than a children’s paddling pool, a French minister said last night.
This group, which was tragically evicted from France’s shores, had left their homes and entrusted it to an unending death-trap.
Yesterday lunchtime saw their “very fragile” craft sinking on calm water. This was just the beginning of the terror.
French fishermen then saw the horrifying sight of their passengers floating around lifeless. Unspeakable horror! A Mayday phone call was immediately made.
The Channel, which was unusually lacking big waves, attracted many migrants to make the risky crossing.
Gerald Darmanin (French interior minister) described the capsize of yesterday’s dinghy in a very frail way. Pictured: Societe Nationale de Sauvetage en Mer boats carrying the bodies of migrants
In order to increase trade, smugglers used weather warnings to warn of severe weather. This was to capitalize on the fact that the crossing window had closed for several days.
Gerald Darmanin (French interior minister) described the dinghy in a very fragile way. He said it was like a swimming pool that you can blow up in your yard. The dinghy was too heavy and it became ill not long after its departure.
With Calais still agonisingly within sight, its occupants – including at least five women and a girl – were plunged into bitterly cold water.
The families would have been in fear and panic. The shock from the freezing temperatures could have caused them to drown in minutes without specialist protection.
According to the British skipper, who heard the incident on the radio of his boat, the tragedy was devastating for the French fishermen.
Matt Cocker of Dover said that the scenes had to have been desperate. Awful. It’s awful.
Fishermen witnessed the heart-rending sight of passengers floating near lifeless bodies. The Mayday signal was immediately activated. Pictured: Calais harbour firefighter trucks arrive on Wednesday
According to him, his French counterparts notified their coastguard, who raised the alarm at around noon asking for help in the rescue operation of the boat carrying around 15 people and others in the waters in the north-east shipping lanes, seven miles from Calais.
Cocker stated that there were approximately 15-20 large French fishing boats off Calais, at the time. However, they did not respond. The French seemed to have little in the way of rescue operations.
The Mayday was responded by vessels from HM Coastguard, Dover and the Border Force ship BF Hurricane. They arrived in about 45 minutes.
Three helicopters – from the UK, France and Belgium – were sent to help the search.
Although the minister of interior claimed 34 were present aboard the dinghy when it capsized, Franck Dhersin a mayor from Dunkirk had earlier stated that there had been more than 50 people onboard the boat.
Although at least one of the passengers was missing as of last night’s time, there were still hopes that they would be found alive.
Two individuals were pulled from the seawater still alive and being treated for hypothermia. The rescuers were unable to reach the remaining 31 people.
Cocker suggested that most likely, the migrants’ dinghy simply failed to turn because it was cheap and weak.
The sea was flat with about 30 boats crossing it, he said. They were put in inflatables made of cheap plastic. They aren’t boats. People overload them, and then they break down and inflate. They don’t always have life jackets. They are not likely to survive.
He stated that many traffickers don’t have motors. The traffickers are charging £3,000 to £5,000 each [person]With 20 employees on board, they can really maximize their profit.
A grim procession of boats carried the bodies of the dead into Calais last night as they sailed through the dark waters.
France’s president Emmanuel Macron was pictured looking glum after hearing the news. Officials and politicians expressed shock at this ‘accident waiting’.
Paul-Devot Quayside was lined with around 20 emergency vehicles. A special motorised hoist was also brought to the location.
A silent vigil was held on the dockside by human rights activists. One lady carried a sign reading in French, which read: “How many more deaths are you going to need Calais?”
After the announcement, Emmanuel Macron, French president of France was looking sombre. Officials and politicians expressed shock at this ‘accident waiting’.
French MP Pierre-Henri Dumont declared: ‘The Channel right now is becoming the new Mediterranean Sea – it’s like an open sky graveyard.’
Jean-Marc Puissesseau was the head of Calais port. He told UK reporters that even though it looks rough at the moment, the Channel is full of waves.
“It’s dangerous. We must all try to find a solution because there will be more – they try everything to get to your country.
“That is why I’m very upset.” It’s hard to know what I should do.
Then he added, “If there are fifty people on the boat and some water is in it then the boat will be too full for them to drain the water out.”
“Then water becomes more plentiful and this is what happens. The sea is very, very cold – there is little chance of survival.’
Darmanin spoke out at a press conference from the quayside and said that this was an awful situation for France, Europe, or humanity. He added: “Today, it is an appalling circumstance for France, Europe, or humanity to watch these people die at sea.”
He blamed Berlin’s government for not stopping people from buying dinghies and transporting them to France.
He stated that four persons had been detained so far in connection to the tragedy.
Mr Darmanin told reporters that ‘1,500 people have been arrested since the start of January, and four of them today – we suspect that they were directly linked to this particular crossing’.