French authorities successfully rescued 115 migrants who were attempting to cross the English Channel towards England in insecure boats, during two separate operations carried out on the night of April 3rd to 4th in northwestern France.

The first operation involved the deployment of the rescue vessel 'Abeille Normandie' from the maritime intervention and rescue unit, after a boat carrying migrants was spotted departing from the 'Wimereux' beach in the Pas-de-Calais region.

This operation resulted in the rescue of 66 individuals aboard the boat.

Later that same night, the same vessel intervened again, rescuing an additional 49 migrants after spotting a second boat off the coast of Audresselles.

According to a statement from French authorities, some of the passengers continued their journey, while the remaining individuals were rescued.

The 115 rescued individuals were brought to the port of Boulogne-sur-Mer, where emergency and rescue teams provided them with initial medical care.

This incident occurs amidst a worrying increase in attempts to migrate across the English Channel.

According to the French Office for the Fight Against Illegal Migration (Oltim), 78 migrants lost their lives in 2024 while attempting to cross the channel in what are referred to as 'small boats', marking the highest number of victims recorded since this phenomenon began in the region in 2018.