A migrant has died in the English Channel after falling from an overcrowded boat off the coast of France.
The man was one of a dozen people who fell off this morning while making the perilous journey. French authorities said he was rushed to land via helicopter where he was pronounced dead.
Several people fell into the sea off Hardelot in northern France, according to the French Maritime Prefecture of the Channel and North Sea.
Many people had attempted to cross the Channel since early Wednesday morning, the prefecture said, noting the good weather conditions.
Rescue services were deployed on the shore, with 20 migrants led into a building nearby to warm up, French news outlet Le Monde reports.
It brings the number of fatalities linked to overcrowded dinghies this year to 57.
Some two miles away from the coast six soaked migrants, some of whom were wrapped in survival blankets were seen sitting on a bench, according to reports.
According to a member of the charity Utopia 56, a French-based association mobilising citizens in order to support displaced and homeless people in France, a number of people were suffering from “severe hypothermia” after falling into the bitterly cold waters.
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