LILLE: Two women died overnight while attempting to cross the English Channel from France to Britain.
French authorities confirmed the deaths on Saturday, adding that approximately 60 other individuals had been rescued from the incident.
The tragedy occurred south of the beaches of Neufchatel-Hardelot, where about 100 people were trying to reach the UK on a makeshift boat.
About 60 people are currently being taken care of, according to Isabelle Fradin-Thirode, an official in nearby Montreuil-sur-Mer.
A couple and their child suffering from moderate hypothermia were rushed to a hospital in Boulogne for treatment.
This incident brings the number of Channel crossing deaths to at least 25 so far this year, based on an AFP tally of official data.
Since January, a record 32,000 migrants have arrived in Britain by crossing the Channel in small boats.
Under a recent Franco-British scheme, the UK can return migrants after arrival if they are deemed ineligible for asylum, including those who have passed through a safe country to reach UK shores.
In return, London will accept an equal number of migrants from France who are likely to have their asylum claims granted.
The move has not significantly discouraged migrants from making the perilous crossing, as they have mostly endured acute hardship and dangers to come so near their ultimate goal.
On Friday, an AFP team observed hundreds of migrants in the Gravelines area in northern France preparing to cross the Channel from different points on the beach whenever the weather turned favourable.
Several migrants interviewed by AFP earlier this week in a makeshift camp at Loon-Plage near Dunkirk expressed similar determination to reach Britain.
Saad, a 30-year-old Palestinian from Iraq, told AFP that staying in France or returning home both represented certain death for him. – AFP
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