Survivor of canal tragedy hopes his friend made it

Issued on: 17.09.2024 – 15:33Changed: 17.09.2024 – 15:32

3 minutes

Eight people have been confirmed to have died since the boat ran into difficulties in the middle of the night this weekend en route from France to Britain, and around ten have been taken to hospital.

“I called my friend's name five, six times, but there was no response,” Khames told AFP about the dramatic events in the early hours of Sunday morning.

The 31-year-old did not want to give his or his friend's last name because he did not want to worry his family while there was still hope. He did, however, say they both came from “the same town, the same neighborhood, the same street.”

Khames, who attended a memorial service for the deceased on Monday, told AFP that the two met again in Italy a month ago and from there travelled by bus to France to begin the dangerous journey across the sea to England.

Shortly before they boarded the boat, they were together on the beach. “That was the last time I saw him,” said Khames.

They set off in good weather, but Khames quickly realized that the boat, a rigid-hulled inflatable boat, was too small for the estimated 59 people from Eritrea, Sudan, Syria, Afghanistan, Egypt and Iran who were crammed into it.

The ship capsized shortly after midnight off the French coast near Ambleteuse, a picturesque village about 10 kilometers north of Boulogne-sur-Mer. French authorities said it had probably run aground on rocks.

“Everyone started looking for a friend, a son, a brother, a loved one,” Khames said.

A Sudanese migrant, using the light from her smartphone to look at the bodies dragged onto the beach, told Khames she thought she recognized his friend among the dead.

Since then, he said, he has been living “a nightmare.” His request to see the bodies for safety reasons was rejected because he is not a family member.

“But he has no one else here,” Khames said of his friend, desperately hoping that he would be among the injured taken to the hospital.

“My last attempt”

The latest tragedy means 46 migrants have already died trying to reach British shores this year, a regional official said, and 12 in 2023.

After his narrow escape, Khames has come to the conclusion that one failed border crossing is enough and that he would rather apply for asylum in France than try again to enter the UK.

“This was my first attempt,” he said. “It will also be my last.”

The French and British governments have been trying for years to stop the influx of migrants who pay smugglers thousands of euros per head for the crossing on overloaded rubber dinghies.

According to British authorities, more than 22,000 migrants have crossed the Channel to England since the beginning of the year.

According to the British government, over 1,000 people took advantage of the calm weather and crossed the island from France to England this weekend alone. This included 801 people on board 14 small boats on Saturday and 292 people on six boats on Sunday – the day of the disaster.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron this summer promised greater “cooperation” in tackling the rising number of illegal immigrants.

Starmer held talks in Rome on Monday with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who has had some success in stemming the influx of migrants across the Mediterranean.

© 2024 AFP