More than 150 migrants were rescued early Tuesday after a boat carrying them caught fire while attempting to cross the English Channel from France to the United Kingdom.
French maritime authorities said the boat’s engine burst into flames, causing the vessel to deteriorate rapidly and triggering a large-scale rescue operation involving both French and British coastguards.
A total of 157 people were brought to safety after emergency teams responded to the incident.
Earlier in the night, French authorities had already rescued five people from the same boat before the fire broke out.
The vessel had departed from near Boulogne-sur-Mer in northern France. French rescue services had been monitoring its journey because of the dangers associated with small boat crossings across the Channel.
There were no reports of deaths or serious injuries following the rescue.
The English Channel remains one of the world’s busiest and most dangerous shipping routes for migrants attempting to reach Britain. According to the Migration Observatory, 162 people died while trying to make the crossing between 2018 and 2025.
The issue of irregular migration across the Channel has remained a major political concern in the UK, prompting successive governments to tighten immigration policies and step up efforts against people-smuggling networks.
Just two days before the latest rescue, British Prime Minister Andy Burnham pledged to intensify efforts to tackle illegal Channel crossings.
Burnham said his government would be “relentless” in its fight against human trafficking gangs, while also stressing the need to create safe and legal migration routes to reduce the demand for dangerous crossings.
Authorities are continuing investigations into the incident.
