Just days after Britain and France hailed a major breakthrough in reducing small boat numbers, people smugglers have sent a defiant message, launching a mega dinghy from the furthest point in the English Channel.
The French Coastguard confirmed to GB News that the dinghy set off from a beach east of Cherbourg, around 200 nautical miles from the traditional launch sites around Dunkirk and Calais.
French authorities have estimated that up to 140 illegal immigrants are on board the vessel.
Several French lifeboats and a border patrol ship – the Abeille Liberte – were alerted to the launch in the early hours.
They have been escorting the dinghy directly north towards the Isle of Wight.
As it approaches UK waters, lifeboats from Yarmouth and Bembridge have raced to meet it.
A Coastguard search and rescue plane is also circling the area.
After a week of windy weather and no boat crossings, a slight improvement in conditions has allowed criminal gangs to launch multiple boats today.
GB News can confirm six migrant dinghies have been launched so far today with three boats already making it to UK waters.
The People’s Channel estimates that around 300 migrants could make it to Britain today.
Although winds in the Channel have dipped, the sea state remains choppy and far from ideal sailing conditions for flimsy migrant dinghies.
One boat launched from the Dunkirk area was forced to turn back just before reaching UK waters this lunchtime.
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Another migrant dinghy launched from a beach near Dieppe in the early hours.
If it makes it, it is not likely to arrive in UK waters until later this evening.
The news of a migrant boat launch out of the Cherbourg area will deeply alarm British and French authorities because of the dangers associated with trying to cross the Channel so far West.
A French Coastguard spokesman said: “A boat carrying approximately 140 migrants on board was reported to the Regional Operational Centre for Surveillance and Rescue, west of the Bay of Seine.”
The spokesman said multiple lifeboats, patrol boats and a maritime rescue helicopter was launched to monitor the dinghy.
He added: “The Abeille Liberté reinforced the surveillance operation of the precarious boat and then took over from some of the SNSM (French lifeboat) assets.
“The migrant boat is currently continuing its route toward the UK.
“Determined to reach the UK, migrants making the crossings aboard precarious boats often refuse the assistance offered by French assets, only accepting it when faced with extreme emergencies.
“Given the structural fragility of these systematically overloaded boats, the choice is made not to force the migrants to board state rescue vessels to avoid endangering their lives in the event of a shipwreck.”
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