Two migrants die in scramble to board overcrowded UK-bound mega-dinghies on French coast

Two UK-bound migrants have died as they scrambled for places on overcrowded mega-dinghies.

French prosecutors on Friday said they had opened criminal enquiries into the tragedies on English Channel beaches.

Fighting broke out on the coast at Camiers, south of Boulogne-sur-Mer, on Thursday morning following 'reports of a migrant-carrying vessel in distress', said a spokesman for the Pas-de-Calais prefecture.

'Around thirty individuals managed to board the boat, but an adult male was then found in the water, and in cardiorespiratory arrest,' he added.

Medics tried to revive the man – who has not been identified – but he was then declared dead at the scene.

A few miles north, 'the dead body of a person in their thirties, of African appearance, was discovered on the beach at Neufchâtel-Hardelot', said the same spokesman.

Cécile Gressier, the Boulogne prosecutor, confirmed that investigations were underway, as both people smugglers or other migrants faced possible manslaughter charges.

The latest deaths mean that at least 21 people, including women and children, have died in the Channel this year as they tried to get to Britain.

Just yesterday, damning footage showed a man abandoning a child before scrambling onto a dinghy in France. 

Migrants try to board a smuggler's boat off the beach of Equihen-Plage, northern France, on September 23, 2026

Harrowing and chaotic footage recorded off a beach in France shows the man clutching a toddler as he attempts to board the small boat.

In chest-deep water, and amid heavy swell, he then lets go of the child who is left floating in the sea for a few seconds, face up.

Members of the French lifeboat organisation, the SNSM, then swim up and pluck the child from the water.

The youngster, who appears to be aged three or four, is then taken back to shore on a rescue board and the man resumes his attempt to clamber aboard the dinghy.

It is not known whether there is any relationship between the man and the child, who was dressed in a black, hooded anorak and an orange lifejacket.

The video clip was filmed off Berck beach, about 30 miles south of Boulogne, on Monday afternoon.

Many migrants have drowned, while others have been crushed to death in overcrowded boats.

The worst tragedy of this kind came in November 2021, when 27 migrants died after a dinghy sank while heading to the UK – the highest recorded number of deaths from a single incident.

Multiple attempts at crossings have taken place from the coast of northern France over the last few days, as the smugglers take advantage of calm seas and good weather.

According to figures from the UK Home Office, 781 migrants arrived in Britain on Wednesday – the highest single-day total recorded so far this year.

In total, 18,565 migrants have reached England via this route since January, a figure down by more than 40 per cent compared to the same period in 2025.

The surge in crossings also indicates that people-trafficking gangs are still getting hold of dinghies and outboard motors with ease, despite a crackdown on supply routes.

This week has also witnessed two 'uncontrolled landings' in which migrant boats reached the UK without being intercepted by the authorities.

In further chaotic scenes a dinghy launched from near Bayeux, in Normandy, made a record 38-hour voyage.

They launched just before 10am on Monday and, on Tuesday afternoon, were picked up by RNLI lifeboats and later transferred to a Border Force cutter.

The 51 migrants aboard were eventually brought ashore to Dover in the early hours of Wednesday.