Border Force agents bring 30 migrants ashore in Dover after they crossed calm Channel waters in a dinghy as number of arrivals this year hits 1,388
- Around 30 migrants arrived at Dover in a dinghy on Saturday around 7am
- The boat was picked up by a Border Force Seeker vessel and towed to land
- The vessel eventually had to be freed after it was compromised and began to sink
Around 30 migrants have been brought into Dover by Border Force agents on the first day of arrivals after a yacht with migrants arrived on Rye Harbour.
The migrants came into Britain in an inflatable dinghy at around 7am on Saturday morning and were towed into Tug Haven, Dover by Border Force.
The latest arrival takes the total number of migrants recorded arriving through Channel crossings to 1,388 on at least 47 boats during 2022.
The people on the dinghy disembarked and were taken away to be processed but their vessel had to be cut free from the Border Force Seeker vessel it was attached to as it began to sink.
The migrants came into Britain in an inflatable dinghy at around 7am on Saturday morning
A Border Force Seeker vessel was used to bring the migrant vessel into port in Dover
Home Office data shows the meteoric rise of people crossing the English Channel last year, peaking dramatically in November and December
The boat which sailed in a small window of opportunity when the English Channel was flat and calm
There were around 30 people on the boat which sailed in a small window of opportunity when the English Channel was flat and calm before gales picked up and the sea became choppy later in the day.
The latest arrival comes after 21 migrants dived off a yacht into a river after its sailor ran it aground during low tide on February 12.
The group capsized the 20ft vessel when they rushed to one side to see why they had stopped moving, toppling it over in the water.
They got stuck near the bank in Rye Harbour in East Sussex at around 1pm after sailing the boat across the English Channel and up the river.
Footage, shared with MailOnline, showed people desperately swimming towards a nearby dinghy that was deployed from the yacht.
They got stuck near the bank in Rye Harbour in East Sussex at around 1pm after sailing the boat across the English Channel and up the river. Some were forced to jump into the water
The group capsized the 20ft vessel when they rushed to one side to see why they had stopped moving, toppling it over in the water
Some of the people were forced to leap into the water as the yacht slowly tipped over and capsized when too many grouped on one side.
At least one man could be seen swimming through the water with an orange life jacket towards the dinghy.
Footage taken later in the evening showed the boat after it had been re-floated by responders from the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI).
Official figures released for the first time yesterday showed 28,526 people arrived in the UK after crossing the English Channel in small boats last year – more than 95 times higher than in 2018.
The Home Office statistics were higher than previously thought and compare with 8,466 people crossing the Channel in 2020, 1,843 in 2019 and just 299 in 2018.
Numbers arriving in the UK reached their highest peak in November 2021, when 6,971 small boats arrived in a single month.
Despite high-profile deaths highlighting the dangers of crossing the 21-mile Dover Strait in unsuitable craft, migrants continue to arrive in high numbers
Official figures released for the first time yesterday showed 28,526 people arrived in the UK after crossing the English Channel in small boats last year
The people on the dinghy disembarked and were taken away to be processed
The migrant vessel had to be cut free from the Border Force Seeker vessel it was attached to as it began to sink
November 27 also saw the greatest loss of life in the migrant crisis when 27 people tragically drowned in the English Channel after their dinghy collapsed, including seven women and three children.
Despite highlighting the dangers of crossing the 21-mile Dover Strait in unsuitable craft, migrants continued to arrive in high numbers throughout December.
The number of asylum claims made in the UK has also climbed to its highest in nearly two decades, while the backlog of cases waiting to be determined continues to soar.
There were 48,540 asylum applications – relating to 56,495 people – in the UK in 2021, up 63 per cent on the previous year and the highest for a calendar year since 2003.
How many migrants have crossed the Channel from France to the UK since the start of the year?
According to Home Office figures:
January 4 – 66
January 10 – 96
January 12 – 30
January 13 – 271
January 14 – 118
January 15 – 197
January 18 – 168
January 20 – 25
January 23 – 87
January 24 – 67
January 25 – 183
January 26 – 39
February 12 – 11
February 26 – 30
Total so far: 1,388 migrants reported crossing in at least 47 boats
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