19 people rescued from dinghy off Belgian coast while attempting to reach UK
Nineteen people were rescued off the coast of De Haan early on Thursday morning, federal police have confirmed. Their dinghy got into difficulties while attempting to reach the UK due to a faulty engine and a leaking hull.
The emergency centre received an alarm call at 3:30. Speaking in English, the caller reported that a boat carrying about 20 people had run into trouble in the North Sea. The Blankenberg Voluntary Sea Rescue Service and the marine police attended the scene and found a small vessel adrift off the coast of De Haan. The outboard motor was faulty, while the inflatable hull was leaking.
Eighteen men and one woman were on board. Only one had a life jacket. All 19 people were rescued and given survival blankets but none required hospital treatment. According to their own statements, they had been travelling for six to seven hours.
All those on board were administratively arrested by the marine police and remain in detention pending a decision by the Immigration Office. An investigation is also under way into a possible human trafficking gang that may have organised the crossing.
“This shows once again how dangerous it is to attempt that crossing to the UK,” said An Berger, spokesperson for the federal police.
"We stand there with four people checking and that is no longer sustainable"
With local police zones, the federal police will continue to carry out checks in the fight against human trafficking, “on water, on land and also from the air thanks to the Frontex aircraft and air support from the federal police”, she said.
Last week, Interior minister Bernard Quintin met the UK’s Migration minister to discuss closer cooperation between the two countries on migration from the west of Belgium’s coast.
Border control
West Flanders governor Carl Decaluwé has asked Quintin to close the border with France to tackle the issue of people trying to reach the UK via Belgium.
“They are being dropped off by people smugglers with buses at the border and trying to leave on our coast,” Decaluwé said. “We saw as many as 80 transmigrants arriving by bus at the border this week. We stand there with four people checking and that is no longer sustainable.”
He is calling for federal intervention. “Minister Quintin should look into ways of closing the border to systematically control it,” he said. “This will obviously require a lot of manpower.”
#FlandersNewsService | Illustration © PHOTO SAMEER AL-DOUMY / AFP
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