Nearly 500 migrants intercepted in Channel as 2022 total passes 32,000

Border Force intercept nearly 500 migrants in the Channel during dash to UK – bringing total to attempt crossing to record 32,000 so far this year

• A total of 499 migrants were picked up by Border Force in Channel on Thursday 
• Total number to arrive by small boat this year has now reached a record 32,807 
• Men, women and children were seen being brought to shore and put on buses

Hundreds more migrants were intercepted crossing the English Channel in small boats on Thursday as the number to arrive this year surpasses a record 32,000. 

A total of 499 were picked up by Border Force vessels at sea and brought into the harbour at the Port of Dover following 10 separate incidents yesterday, according to government figures.

Women and young children in winter coats and wearing lifejackets could be seen being brought ashore before being placed on buses to be taken to the immigration processing centre at Manston near Ramsgate, Kent. 

A staggering 32,807 people are now known to have made the treacherous crossing of the English Channel so far this year – far exceeding last year’s total of 28,526.

Groups of migrants were brought ashore in a secluded part of the harbour on Thursday and brought up the gangway to the dockside at a former jetfoil terminal out of sight from the public.

Border Force vessels including Hurricane, Ranger and Typhoon brought the asylum seekers into the safety of the harbour throughout the morning.

It was the first crossing since last Friday when 656 people were intercepted in 15 separate incidents, according to official figures.

Strong winds at sea have prevented crossings until now.

A group of people thought to be migrants walk through the Border Force compound in Dover on Thursday 

The news comes as the total number of people making the dangerous crossing so far in 2022 has passed 32,000, according to analysis of Ministry of Defence figures

Women and young children in winter coats and wearing lifejackets could be seen being brought ashore before being placed on buses to be taken to the immigration processing centre at Manston near Ramsgate, Kent

The latest arrivals follow five days with no Channel crossings, likely due to poor weather

People, including a small number of children, were wrapped in blue blankets and carrying their belongings in black bin bags as they walked through the Border Force compound in Dover

A group of people was brought to shore in Dover, Kent yesterday morning following a small boat incident in the Channel, the world’s busiest shipping lane

Crossings of the English Channel in small boats resumed Thursday after weather put a five-day halt to people trafficking operations

A dramatic rescue operation was also launched off the French coast after two dinghies got into difficulties with several people falling into the sea in treacherous conditions in the early hours of Thursday.

One boat with 43 people on board had to be rescued off Calais. Three people fell into the sea and had to be saved by French authorities.

A second boat with 50 people on board also began to sink in the middle of sandbanks near Dunkirk. Several people ended up in the water.

A French customs patrol boat and a French lifeboat all-weather canoe rescued them while several people are already in the water.

All were rescued and brought back to shore.

The numbers who have arrived so far this year have already far exceeded last year’s total of 28,526.

In 2020 just 8,410 made the crossing of the 21-mile Dover Straits.

The number of asylum seekers brought ashore in September so far now stands at 7,767.

Speaking to BBC Radio Kent about the Rwanda deal yesterday morning, Prime Minister Liz Truss said: ‘We are (sticking with the Rwanda policy) and what we will make sure is that UK courts can’t be overruled by the European Court of Human Rights so we are able to deal with the small boats crisis, and the Home Secretary is determined to get on with that.’ 

Dover MP Natalie Elphicke has said: ‘With these shocking record numbers of illegal crossings, getting the small boats crisis under control should be a key priority.

‘With the approach of Winter, the seas will get rougher and the weather colder- inevitably the risk of further loss of life will increase. That’s why urgent action is needed to stop these dangerous crossings.’

Border Force vessels are now using a newly constructed docking station in an area of the port which was a former jetfoil terminal away from public areas. A large fence has also been put up to screen the area off from the public.

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