Overview

• Authorities said the victims, reported as adult Somali women, were found in cardiac arrest and could not be revived.
• The makeshift vessel launched overnight with about 100 aboard and reportedly drifted before returning toward the French shore, where rescues took place.
• A couple and their child were taken to hospital in Boulogne for hypothermia, with dozens of others receiving care on shore.
• Boulogne-sur-Mer prosecutor Cécile Gressier opened an investigation to determine the cause of the deaths and identify those responsible for the crossing.
• The incident comes during a weather-driven surge in small-boat departures, with over 32,000 arrivals in the UK this year and only a handful of returns so far under the new UK–France swap arrangement.