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migrant Trapped on a sinking boat in the English Channel An investigation into the tragedy, which killed eight people, has revealed a desperate “SOS” voice message was sent by a French charity worker.
The report from the Maritime Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) shows that the French charity Utopia 56 first alerted the Coast Guard after receiving a Whatsapp voice message from someone on board just before 2am on December 14, 2022.
It read: “Hello brother, we are on the boat and in trouble, please help. There are children and family members on the boat, water is pouring into the boat, we can’t guarantee the safety of the children.”
“Brother, please help me. Please, please, please, we are in the water. We have family.”
The investigation found that the occupants of the dinghy were only able to raise the alarm using their mobile phones. The MAIB said the sound of someone “crying loudly” and the sound of an engine could be heard in the background.
The study concluded that the desperate migrants, all men aged between 13 and 35, must have lied about having children and family members on the dinghy in an attempt to speed up their rescue.
estimate 47 migrants thrown into icy water About three and a half hours into the crossing, as the boat pulled out of the channel, a loud noise indicated that something was wrong with the inflatable boat and water began to pour into it.
According to reports, the situation began to deteriorate rapidly around 3 a.m. and rescue work began shortly thereafter.
The bottom of the boat collapsed and the refugees struggled to get on board. migrant They struggled to escape into a British fishing boat, which spotted the boat and came to its rescue. Emergency crews arrived on the scene and pulled people out of the water.
At 2:13 a.m., the French charity emailed the Dover Maritime Rescue Coordination Center to inform them that the migrant boat was in distress.
The Malaysian International Investigation Bureau report found that all the people on board were male, aged between 13 and 35. They came from a number of countries including Afghanistan, Sudan, India, Uzbekistan and Albania.
At least eight migrants died in the tragedy, of which four bodies have been found, while the rest were lost at sea. MAIB reports indicate that only one of the four bodies has been identified and returned to its family.
The investigation revealed: “The inflatable boat was totally unsuitable for crossing the river and the only way for the people on board to call the police was via mobile phone.”
The MAIB report describes how the transom (the wooden wall at the rear of the dinghy) was made from three pieces of plywood that were glued and nailed together. The report continues: “The fabric floor was glued to the pipes and transom and secured in various places with masking tape.”
The vessel was “of particularly poor construction quality compared to other vessels previously salvaged and inspected.”
The investigation found that although some life-saving equipment was placed on the boat before launching, the quantity was insufficient and the quality was poor, with many buckles missing.
The sea temperature was 11 degrees Celsius at the time and the migrants could have suffered cold water shock if the lifeboat had malfunctioned. The MAIB concluded that most of the migrants survived due to their close proximity to the fishing boat.
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