A boat with dozens of migrants rips apart in the English Channel off France, killing 12

A group of people thought to be migrants are brought in to Dover, Kent, U.K., aboard the RNLI Dungeness Lifeboat after being rescued in the English Channel, Sept. 3, 2024.

A boat carrying migrants attempting to cross from northern France to Britain tore apart in the English Channel on Tuesday, plunging dozens into the treacherous waters and resulting in the deaths of 12 people, authorities confirmed. Many of the victims were not wearing life preservers.

Olivier Barbarin, mayor of Le Portel near Boulogne-sur-Mer, where survivors were treated, stated, "Unfortunately, the bottom of the boat ripped open... If people don’t know how to swim in the agitated waters, it can go very quickly."

Emergency workers with the bodies of migrants who died trying to cross the Channel to England, in Boulogne-sur-Mer, northern France, on Sept. 3, 2024.

Lt. Etienne Baggio, spokesperson for the French sea rescue agency, said that 65 people were pulled from the water during a four-hour rescue operation. The incident marks the deadliest migrant tragedy in the English Channel this year. Previous fatal incidents include the deaths of four migrants in July and five in both April and January during similar crossings.

Emergency services at the port of Boulogne-Sur-Mer, France, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024, after a boat thought to be carrying migrants ripped apart attempting to cross the English Channel.