Channel: two dead and two seriously injured during an attempted clandestine crossing off the coast of Berck

Two men died during an attempted clandestine crossing of the Channel during the night from Sunday to Monday off the coast of Berck (Pas-de-Calais), according to the department's prefecture interviewed by AFP, confirming information from La Voix du Nord.

The two migrants were aged around 30 and 40 years old. Two women with “burns over a large part of the body” were also hospitalized in relative emergency, again according to the prefecture. La Voix du Nord mentions burns due to the chemical reaction occurring when gasoline is mixed with sea water.

An investigation was opened by the Boulogne-sur-Mer public prosecutor's office to determine the circumstances of these two new deaths. This new tragedy brings to at least 24 the number of migrant deaths at sea on the Franco-British border since the start of the year, according to an AFP count based on official sources. A week ago, another attempt to illegally cross the Channel left three people dead, including a child, found in a boat overloaded with passengers off the coast of Pas-de-Calais.