The body of a man wearing a life jacket, "
probably
" a migrant who was trying to reach England, was discovered Sunday October 18 on a beach in Sangatte (Pas-de-Calais) after a night marked by many. attempts to cross, said the prosecution.
Read also: Pas-de-Calais: a fisherwoman discovered dead near Boulogne-sur-Mer
The firefighters explained that they had found this man on Sunday morning, whose age is estimated between 20 and 40 years old, in a state of stiff corpse, wearing a life jacket, on a beach in Sangatte.
This man is “
probably
” a migrant who fell into the water while trying to cross the Channel, Boulogne-sur-Mer prosecutor Pascal Marconville told AFP.
According to a press release issued by the Pas-de-Calais prefecture, the deceased man is "
Iranian in appearance
".
An investigation has been opened to try to determine the circumstances of his death.
Pascal Marconville underlines that "a
lot of attempts at crossings
" occurred during the night.
"
A meteorological window seems to have tempted the networks of smugglers
".
A sea of oil near the French coast and calm weather have indeed followed several days of rough weather, but the calm near the coast could be deceptive because the high tides cause very violent currents in the strait.
For the day of Saturday alone, the prefecture recorded nine attempts at “
prevented
”
crossings
, representing 201 migrants, and seven crossings which reached the British coasts, carrying 102 others.
Sunday morning, 11 crossings were intercepted by the French authorities, involving 191 migrants.
According to the prefecture, since the start of the year, 479 attempted crossings have been intercepted by the French authorities while 559 have reached their goal, Great Britain.
If the cliffs of Dover seem very close in good weather from the Calaisis coast, the Channel is "
one of the busiest areas in the world and where the weather conditions are often difficult,
" recalls the maritime prefecture.
