140 migrants in single dinghy rescued in English Channel

A group of around 140 migrants, who had embarked on a perilous journey in a single small inflatable boat, were rescued from the English Channel. The migrants, who had originated from the Normandy coast, requested assistance in UK waters and were subsequently picked up by lifeboats from the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) as well as the French coastguard.

The vessel had made its way across the channel from the Bay of the Seine and was being shadowed by rescue vessels of the French coastguard for nearly ten hours to ensure its safe passage. Despite the fact that it was not deemed safe to attempt to stop the dinghy on water, the migrants were ultimately brought to the shore in the UK.

This rescue operation followed a recent meeting between the UK's Prime Minister and the French President, where they discussed plans to increase efforts in reducing the number of small boat crossings. The incident occurred days after a record 230 people were successfully transported across the Channel in a single small boat. Throughout August, it was reported that an unusually high number of migrants had attempted to depart from Normandy, which was a departure from the usual launch points around Calais.

Last year, local officials had noted a rise in individuals attempting to depart from Normandy, making the crossing significantly longer than usual. Home Office officials stated that the government remains committed to tackling dangerous small boat crossings and restoring control at the border. Over the past year, joint efforts have resulted in over 48,000 attempted crossings being prevented and 1,100 boats and engines seized.

In a bid to further combat this issue, Burnham and Macron agreed to sign a payment-by-results deal with the French to increase the number of personnel on French beaches by 40%. Despite the reduction in small boat crossings, smugglers are reportedly loading more people onto fewer, larger vessels known as mega dinghies to avoid detection.

In the first nine months of 2026, a total of 16,513 people crossed the English Channel by small boat from France, marking a 43% decrease on the same period last year.