One hundred and thirty-eight migrants, in difficulty while trying to reach England on makeshift boats, were rescued Thursday off the Strait of Pas-de-Calais, the maritime prefecture announced on Friday (December 17th).
Read alsoCalais in the migrant trap
"
Thursday, December 16, the regional operational center for surveillance and rescue (CROSS) Gris-Nez is informed that many boats attempting to cross the Channel are in difficulty in the strait
", indicates the maritime prefecture of the Channel and the North Sea in a press release.
Two French Navy ships and two all-weather boats from the National Society for Rescue at Sea (SNSM), respectively from Boulogne-sur-Mer (Pas-de-Calais) and Dunkirk (Nord), intervened to recover the 138 castaways and bring them back to the quay.
The latter were taken care of by the border police (PAF) of the ports of Gravelines, Calais and Boulogne-sur-Mer, and the departmental fire and rescue service (SDIS).
Since the end of 2018, illegal crossings of the Channel by migrants seeking to reach the United Kingdom have increased despite repeated warnings from the authorities who highlight the danger linked to the density of traffic, strong currents and the low temperature of the water.
