Lille (AFP)
Twenty-five migrants, including three children, who were trying to reach England aboard a RIB, were rescued Wednesday morning off Calais, said the prefecture of the Channel and the North Sea.
Around 04H00, the prefecture was warned by the regional operational center for monitoring and rescue (Cross) Gris-Nez "that a semi-rigid boat with 25 migrants on board" was "in difficulty about 10 km at wide of Calais, "said the prefecture in a statement.
The migrants have warned the relief that "relayed to the Cross the demand assistance after a breakdown engine".
The migrants then found themselves on a sandbar and "only an intervention by the airs" was possible. At 6:15 am, 12 migrants were helpled.
"The migrants are safe and sound" and were taken care of by firefighters and the border police at 06:35, said the prefecture.
During the operation, "the tide went down and the 13 other migrants were able to reach the coast on their own".
Britain's Interior Minister Priti Patel is due to discuss with her French counterpart Christophe Castaner in Paris on Thursday the fight against these clandestine Channel crossings, which are on the rise this summer and are particularly dangerous because of the density of traffic. maritime, strong currents and low water temperature.
© 2019 AFP