The man, along with other migrants, was an attempt to cross over the English Channel when a deflated boat from a “poor condition” in which he was, caused him to be taken in for medical care, which resulted in cardiac arrest.
An Indian man, around 40 years old, died on Sunday morning in northern France after the inflated boat, which he and other migrants had boarded to cross the English Channel, lost air, French authorities said in a statement.
This has been the deadliest year for attempted crossings aboard small boats for migrants since numbers started surging in 2018, the maritime prefecture overseeing French waters in the Channel said. A man’s death Sunday brought this year’s total to 56.
The statement said the boat, “which seemed to be in a terrible condition,” deflated immediately after leaving shore. Migrants swam back to the beach, but not everyone had a life jacket.”
The Indian man had a heart attack. Police gave him a cardiac massage on the beach, the statement said, but couldn’t resuscitate him. An investigation has been launched.
This was one of the many attempts by migrants to cross the Channel since the weather improved on Monday. The local authorities have registered 57 attempts since then, 32 of which were stopped by law enforcement.
The Calais coast in France has been the departing point for those trying to escape war and poverty elsewhere in the world and who make their way to Britain, sometimes at the risk of taking perilous journeys by sea across one of the world’s busiest shipping channels.
Asylum rules get more challenging in Europe, xenophobia and hostility towards migrants increase, and many of them head north. Though the UK government has also been hostile, many of the migrants have relatives or friends there and feel that they would fare better there.
