Dymchurch beach in Kent
Migrant boat tragedies like those in the Mediterranean Sea could happen in the Channel, the French coastguard has said
The warning comes as a group of migrants, including two children, were rescued off the Kent coast after their inflatable boat started sinking off the coast of Dymchurch in Kent.
According to reports, the people on the boat had alerted their families, who raised the alarm with the French authorities at about 11.40pm on Saturday.
A British coastguard helicopter launched a rescue mission, helped by lifeboats from Dungeness and Littlestone and coastguard rescue teams from Dungeness and Folkestone.
The 18 Albanians and two Britons on the boat were taken to Dover for questioning by UK Border Force officers and the boat itself, which was found at about 2am, was examined on Dymchurch beach.
A Home Office spokesman has since revealed a second vessel was found nearby, believed to be linked to the first one.
This vessel has now been removed and passed to the authorities.
President of the French coastguard, Bernard Barron, told Sky News the suspected smuggler craft was unsuitable for crossing the Channel.
He said: "It's starting to become a very similar situation to that seen in the Mediterranean and my biggest fear is that the same kind of tragedies we see in Greece or Italy will start to repeat in the Channel."
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