An official British investigation into the November 2021 tragedy in which at least 27 migrants died in the English Channel suggests coastguard personnel may have developed a "mental threshold" of assuming that migrants were in "less severe peril" than they claimed on the phone.
An official report released by Britain's Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) on Wednesday said rescue efforts of at least 27 migrants in the English Channel in November 2021 were hampered by "poor visibility" and "a lack of dedicated aerial surveillance of the Dover Strait."
The report added that the coastguard may have believed the migrant claims about the danger they faced were exaggerated because they believed migrants were advised to report high levels of distress to speed up rescue operations.
Channel deaths trigger UK-France political spat
The November 2021 tragedy, which occurred off the coast of Calais in the Dover Strait and included the death of a seven-year-old girl, is the worst on record involving migrants in the English Channel.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) called it the "largest loss of life" since 2014, when the UN agency began collecting data about missing migrants in the Channel.
Two survivors were recovered from French waters and four people remain missing.
A blame game ensued between France and Britain following the tragedy, with both countries squabbling over who should take responsibility.
A French migrant charity had flagged in the wake of the tragedy that the boats' passengers had called both French and British authorities, but were only sent help when a French fisherman raised an alert 10 hours later.
What did the probe uncover?
The MAIB report outlined in several key points what may have compromised the safety of the 33 total passengers on board that day. They include:
- The inflatable boat was "wholly unsuitable" and "ill-equipped for the crossing attempt" while the passengers only method of seeking help was via mobile phone
- The effectiveness of the search and rescue response from the British side was "hampered due to poor visibility and the lack of dedicated aerial surveillance of the Dover Strait"
- Multiple vessels crossing the Dover Strait that day making multiple calls indicating stress made it "extremely challenging" for the HM Coastguard to identify boats and understand how many were attempting the crossing
- Several HM Coastguard capacities were "not yet in place to support the UK's emergency response" in the Channel
Coastguard may have assumed migrants exaggerated SOS calls, probe suggests
The MAIB, which concentrated its investigation on the British response because it was not granted access to information held by the French, said the UK's search and rescue boat and helicopter could not successfully locate the dinghy carrying the migrants at the time.
"Coastguard operators were heavily reliant on the limited information passed to them by French authorities and calls from the occupants of the boats themselves to try to identify the number of boats attempting the crossing, their location and their level of distress," it said.
The MAIB added that it had advised British and French authorities to collaborate to improve communication and the transfer of information between their coastguard agencies.
The report also noted that migrants calling from boats had been advised "to claim high levels of distress when in UK waters in the hope of expediting rescue" and that this "had the potential to mask genuine distress."
Alarmingly, the MAIB's probe suggests that the coastguard may have developed a "mental threshold" of assuming that migrants were in "less severe peril" than they claimed over the phone.
British Transport Minister Mark Harper announced on Thursday (November 9) the government would establish an independent inquiry into the November 2021 tragedy. Family members of the deceased are calling for accountability.
Britain looks to stem migration flows in the English Channel
The English Channel is one of the world's busiest shipping lanes and strong currents make crossings on small flimsy boats life-threatening.
On November 24, 2021, when the tragedy occurred, a total of 1,227 people attempted to cross the Channel, according to the British government. Over 25,000 people have arrived in small boats so far in 2023.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak hopes that the UK's controversial plan to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda will dissuade migrants trying to cross the Channel.