A four-month-old infant died Thursday evening off the coast of Wissant (Pas-de-Calais) in the sinking of an overloaded boat trying to reach England clandestinely, bringing to 52 the number of people who died in attempted crossings. 2024, a record.
Alerted of a clandestine departure, the regional operational surveillance and rescue center (CROSS) Gris-Nez deployed several rescue vessels and a Belgian helicopter on Thursday evening, indicated the maritime prefecture (Prémar) of Manche and the sea from the North on Friday.
The boat “was torn apart in its center, some of the passengers falling into the water, while others held on to the pneumatic elements,” detailed the public prosecutor of Boulogne-sur-Mer, Guirec Le Bras.
“Sixty-five people were recovered safe and sound” but, “after a search, an infant was found unconscious in the water and unfortunately declared deceased,” said Prémar.
The castaways auditioned
The infant, aged four months and probably from Iraqi Kurdistan, was on board “with his parents and two other children”, said the prosecutor. “The castaways were mainly of Iranian, Iraqi, Albanian and Eritrean nationality,” he added.
As part of an investigation opened in particular for “involuntary homicide through a clearly deliberate violation of an obligation of security or prudence”, the services of the Office for Combating Illicit Smuggling of Migrants (Oltim) are “conducting hearings of 50 shipwrecked as witnesses,” continued Guirec Le Bras.
Departures continue despite a high tide phenomenon expected until Sunday, which makes navigation particularly complicated.
On Thursday evening, “the associations called the Cross seven times to report boats in distress (i.e. around 400 people) for which emergency services intervened”, assured the Utopia 56 association in a press release.
“For these tragedies to stop, the action of the State must change,” added the association, which calls for “a policy of reception in France and safe passage to England”.
afp/ther
World
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