Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson: No new date or venue has been set for the meeting between Araghchi and Witkoff, and no negotiations will take place until the outcome is guaranteed
Palestinian platforms: Settlers storm Al-Aqsa Mosque complex under the protection of the occupation police
Palestinian platforms: The IOF detonated a booby-trapped robot east of the al-Zaytoun neighborhood, south of Gaza City
Syrian Defense: We call on all parties in Sweida to cooperate with security forces and exercise restraint
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: The Lebanese Army is continuing its investigations and will later announce any information that does not affect the confidentiality of the investigation
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: It has not yet been determined whether the detainees belong to ISIS or another organization
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: Around 10 people of different nationalities, including Lebanese nationals, were detained
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: The Lebanese army arrested a number of people in the Matn area of Mount Lebanon with possession it has not disclosed
Gaza Civil Defense spokesman: We have strong indications that there are martyrs, injuries, and trapped people in the Salah al-Din area
Gaza Civil Defense spokesman: Citizens should avoid Salah al-Din Street because anyone who approaches it is at risk of being directly targeted

UK coastguard failed to prevent migrant drowning disaster: Independent

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Independent
  • 26 Nov 2022 19:47
5 Min Read

UK Coastguard staff members put in 20-hour days leading up to the disaster that claimed 27 lives in the Channel drowning incident a year ago.

  • x
  • People’s belongings, along with a deflated dinghy, life jacket and engines, lie on a beach in Wimereux, near Calais, the morning after the drownings. Photograph: Kiran Ridley/Getty Images
    People’s belongings, along with a deflated dinghy, life jacket, and engines lie on a beach in Wimereux, near Calais, the morning after the drownings. (Getty Images)

A source told the Independent that mistakes were made during the search and rescue effort following the mass drowning tragedy in the Channel a year ago by a UK coastguard team that was overworked and working up to 20 hours per day.

At least 27 lives were lost on November 24, 2021, and five bodies remain missing.

Following the initial rescue call, it took the UK and French coastguards 12 hours to arrive, and the authorities were at odds over who was to blame. All but two of the passengers had drowned and perished from exposure by the time rescue ships and aircraft arrived on the site.

A source from HM Coastguard who was speaking for the first time about the circumstances that led up to the unfortunate event a year ago said the staff members were overworked and working exceptionally long shifts, frequently without breaks.

“No one comes to work with the intention of letting people die, but, in extremely challenging circumstances, mistakes get made,” the source said.

“Yes, 27 people died, but 27,000-plus people have made it. I’d take a 0.1 percent success rate of survivability. We will never be able to save everybody – no emergency service in the world can say that."

“We’d been working 20-hour days sometimes – really long periods with no breaks. Everybody was tired and frustrated. You can see people were fractious and snapping at each other."

“You have to make quick decisions and yeah, of course, mistakes get made, when you’re working under that level of pressure.”

Charity activists have for long warned that unless the government established safe routes, it was only a matter of time before such tragic deaths occurred in the English Channel.

An unanswered call

The first distress call to the French coastguard was made just before 2.15 am, according to call records provided to lawyers by the French authorities as part of the ongoing investigation. Around 3.15 am, the boat capsized.

Shortly afterward, at 3.30 am, a passenger reported that some of the people were in the water, and the answer he received from French authorities was shockingly, “Yes, but you are in English waters, Sir.”

Related News

France-UK migration pact faces EU review and public backlash

Venezuelan Parliament demands return of 18 children detained in US

More than 20 distress calls were made by those on board between 3.40 and 7.30 am local time. When the rescue crews arrived at the scene at around 2:00 pm, all but two passengers had perished in drownings or from exposure.

Over the course of the night, the UK coastguard, which is responsible for logging emergency calls and coordinating search and rescue missions in the Channel, continued to deny that the dinghy was in British waters, repeatedly telling the passengers to call the French coastguard. In the meantime, the records from France suggested that the boat entered British waters at 2.30 am.

What happened the night of November 24? 

The Independent has learned that 10 coastguard personnel handled calls in the Dover control room on the evening of November 24, 2021.

The task of interpreting the tides, the weather, and the locations of small boats fell to search mission coordinators, who were under the command of a maritime tactical commander.

The British coastguard allegedly tried to call one of the passengers at around 2:45 am, but instead heard a French dial tone, according to an email exchange between French and British officials. According to reports, they came to the conclusion that they were not to blame because the boat was likely still in French waters.

Read next: Cross-Channel migrants top 40,000: UK

As the incident developed, Steven Martin from the charity Channel Rescue, which keeps track of maritime activity, received screenshots from those on board the sinking dinghy, many of whom had shared their live location on WhatsApp to demonstrate that they were in British waters.

Martin is currently a part of the continuing marine accident inquiry and has given attorneys ample proof that the French and British coastguards were aware of the mayday calls but that a rescue vessel didn't arrive at the spot for 12 hours after the initial distress call.

Search and rescue experts, insufficient capacity, and unsuitable vessels are the main problems that need to be fixed for the UK coastguard to operate more efficiently, according to Search and rescue expert Matthew Schanck.

Read next: France, UK sign new deal to thwart migrant Channel crossings

“We need more search and rescue vessels in the Channel. It’s not fair for the coastguard to rely on volunteers, Border Force vessels, and chartered wind farm boats that are not built or equipped for this purpose. The government needs to start investing in resources – shore-based resources like call handlers, helicopters, and more appropriate search and rescue boats in the water.”

He added, “We can’t just stick our heads in the sand and hope this is going to get better.”

Martin blames the government, which he believes has not done enough to address the systemic problems in managing increasing numbers of small boat arrivals.

“The Channel is more militarized now than it was this time last year. Now there are warships patrolling the Channel, which don’t function as search and rescue vessels – they can’t pick people up if they’re in the water."

Read more: EU: New migrant plan approved after France-Italy spat

  • Migrant Crisis
  • France
  • United Kingdom
  • European Union

Most Read

Hezbollah SG reveals war details on Al Mayadeen for the first time

Hezbollah SG reveals war details on Al Mayadeen for the first time

  • Politics
  • 8 Jul 2025
Major ambush in Gaza kills 6 Israeli troops, injures dozens

Major ambush in Gaza kills 5 Israeli troops, injures 14

  • Politics
  • 8 Jul 2025
Israeli soldiers are seen in Beit Hanoun ahead of an operation by the al-Qassam Brigades, undated (Al-Qassam Brigades Military Media)

'Israel' on blast as media exposes report discrepancies in Gaza ambush

  • Palestine
  • 8 Jul 2025
Yemen Navy sinks ETERNITY C ship, shares footage of operation

Yemen Navy sinks ETERNITY C ship, shares footage of operation

  • Politics
  • 9 Jul 2025

Coverage

All
The Ummah's Martyrs

Read Next

All
The Freedom Flotilla ship Handala as it departs for Gaza, where it aims to break the maritime blockade at a port in Syracuse, Sicily in southern Italy on July 13, 2025. (AFP)
Palestine

Freedom Flotilla's Handala departs Sicily in bid to break Gaza siege

The container ship CMA CGM Laperouse, left, docks at the Georgia Ports Authority's Port of Savannah, Sept. 29, 2021, in Savannah, Ga (AP)
Politics

US shipbuilding woes deepen as tariffs, outdated policies backfire

Gaza war raises ethical questions for ex-Obama, Biden officials
Politics

Mercenary firm tied to Gaza war crimes hires Obama-Biden PR operatives

'Israel' targets children in Gaza collecting water
Palestine

'Israel' strikes Gaza kids fetching water, blames it on 'malfunction'

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS