The number of Channel crossings is skyrocketing. Since January, crossings and attempts have jumped 68% compared to the same period in 2021. Crossings to reach the English coast had already tripled last year.
20,000 attempts
According to the Ministry of the Interior, “777 small boat crossing events involving 20,132 candidates were recorded” between January 1 and June 13.
More 10,000 people were arrested by the French authorities. This is an increase of 65% compared to the same period in 2021. It should also be noted that 61.39% of crossings were blocked.
Very popular associations
Utopia 56 has set up an emergency number for exiles in an emergency situation at sea. In Grande-Synthe, this line has never been used so much, “we received 45 distress calls since the beginning of the year while last year, there were 59 over the whole year.”
For its part, the SNSM had to adapt. Most of the rescues are now carried out by the Abeille Normandie and previously the Abeille Languedoc, but the rescuers are regularly put in danger during their interventions.
it’s sometimes hard to be able to fit all the migrants on board
“They are _more and more in the boats_, at least 40 on each. This was not yet the case in 2021reports Alain Ledaguenel, boss of the Dunkirk snsm. We must be 7 to 10 rescuers on our 17 meter long boats now and it is sometimes difficult to be able to fit all the migrants on board.“
In 2021, 28,000 people reached the English coast and 52,000 attempted the crossing.