Teen among four people who died in Channel tragedy – and at least 12 unaccompanied children rescued
A teenager was among the four people who died in the English Channel on Wednesday and at least a dozen unaccompanied asylum seeker children were also onboard the small boat that capsized.
Kent County Council leader Roger Gough told Sky News one of the four people who died as they tried to cross the Channel this week was a teenager.
He also said the council has taken into care 12 unaccompanied asylum-seeking children who were among those rescued from the boat after it capsized in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
They are among 39 people who were rescued from the chilly waters as temperatures plunged this week.
The boat was carrying up to 50 people when it ran into difficulty.
The Royal Navy, French navy, Coastguard and RNLI lifeboats were all involved in a major rescue operation off the Kent coast after authorities were alerted at 3.05am on Wednesday to a “small boat in distress”.
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Moment migrants rescued from sinking boat
A government spokesperson said on Thursday that the search continues with “aerial assets to ensure that everyone is accounted for”.
Two casualties were taken to the William Harvey Hospital in Ashford, bosses there said. One was later discharged but the other had died by the time they arrived, it is understood.
On Wednesday, North Thanet MP Sir Roger Gale told MPs some of the survivors were still in hospital “fighting for their lives”, including women and children.
Fisherman woken up by migrants ‘screaming for help’
A British fisherman whose crew saved 31 people told Sky News he was woken in the early hours of the morning when migrants surrounded his boat “screaming for help” – and a French charity said they received a mayday call.
The boat’s skipper Raymond said he then counted 45 people holding onto the collapsed dinghy and surrounding his fishing boat.
He said those he rescued came from Afghanistan, Iraq, Senegal and India, and told him they had each paid £5,000 to a smuggler in France for passage into the UK.
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Why do migrants cross the Channel?
Charity received mayday call
A French charity which helps migrants in Calais said it received a 22-second WhatsApp voice note at 2.53am from a man on a sinking migrant boat begging for help as babies screamed in the background.
The man said people were in the seawater which had entered the vessel and begged the charity to “help us, help us”, according to Nikolai Posner, a spokesman for the Utopia 56 charity.
Dover and Deal MP Natalie Elphicke has urged Rishi Sunak to “meet urgently” with French President Emmanuel Macron to set up joint patrols in the Channel and on the beaches to prevent boats entering the water and to save lives.
The tragedy came a day after Mr Sunak unveiled a raft of new measures in a bid to curb Channel crossings as he told MPs: “We have to stop the boats.”
More than 44,000 people have made the dangerous crossing this year, government figures show.
A 31-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after an elderly couple died following a fire at their home in St Helens.
Peter Eric Greener, 77, known as Eric, and his partner Sheila Jackson, 83, were caught in the blaze at their home on South John Street in the early hours of Tuesday.
Mr Greener died on Wednesday, while Ms Jackson died on Thursday.
Eric Greener. Pic: Merseyside Police
Sheila Jackson. Pic: Merseyside Police
Merseyside Police said an accelerant was used to start the fire.
On Sunday, the force said the suspect from St Helens had been arrested on suspicion of murder and remains in custody for questioning.
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Detective Superintendent Rachel Wilson said: “Although an arrest has been made, I would like to take this opportunity to remind people to pass on information directly to police or anonymously via Crimestoppers, and not to comment or post in any way which jeopardises this ongoing work.”
DS Wilson said “extensive enquiries” continue.
She added: “And to that end we are still appealing for anyone with information to come forward, particularly if you live in the area of South John Street and recall seeing or hearing anything suspicious at around the time of the incident.
“Please do not assume what you know has already been reported to us, as we can quickly make that assessment.”
UK
How e-bike riders are doing double the speed limit – and many of them work for fast food delivery firms
It’s lunchtime on Birmingham’s New Street.
Close to its many restaurants, food delivery riders are congregating on their bikes.
The area is packed with shoppers and workers.
PC Paige Gartlan is approaching with other officers. She’s on the lookout for illegally modified e-bikes – and she knows she’ll find them here.
“You can physically tell by looking at the bike that it’s generally going to be illegal – the battery pack is taped on to the sides and generally the size of the motor that’s on the back wheel,” she explains.
Sky News has been invited on an operation by West Midlands Police to find these bikes and get them off the streets.
PC Gartlan has been hit by one before. She’s had to tackle a rider to the floor after he drove into her.
Within minutes, she’s spotted a suspicious-looking bike. The rider makes a run for it – followed by plain-clothed officers.
PC Gartlan tests the bike – it’s showing a top speed of 52km/hr on the speedometer – just over 30mph.
PC Paige Gartlan with a seized e-bike
The speed limit for e-bikes in the UK is 15.5mph when using electric power for assistance.
I look up the street and another two riders have been detained. In less than an hour, officers have confiscated four bikes – all were being ridden by fast food delivery drivers.
The commotion is attracting a lot of attention.
“They are dangerous,” Sandra, who has just finished work, tells me.
Demoz had his bike taken by police
She’s stood watching the riders being questioned. She says she’s had near-misses herself and is worried for the safety of the elderly and children.
It’s not just West Midlands police officers here – immigration officials are carrying out checks too. They’re involved in a nationwide operation, which has seen more than 7,000 arrests in the last year – a 50% increase on last year.
Matthew Foster, the immigration enforcement lead officer for the West Midlands, tells me they’ve already found one individual who has entered the UK unlawfully.
“He’s been detained,” he says, “to affect his removal from the UK.”
Further down the street, police are loading illegally modified bikes on to a van – they’re destined to be crushed. One of them had belonged to Demoz.
Read more:
Non-folding e-bikes banned on London Tube
E-bike and e-scooter crimes soar 730% in five years
An e-bike seized by West Midlands Police
He’s on his way home, carrying a big box with the logo of one of the main fast food delivery firms on it.
He tells me he used to have an illegal bike, but he thought his new one was legal.
“I make a mistake, I have to say sorry, I will do better for the future,” he says.
I get in touch with the big delivery firms; Deliveroo, Uber Eats, and Just Eat.
Their representatives say they constantly remind workers of their safety obligations, and that they’re all working closely with the government to increase security checks on riders.
As he leaves, Demoz, now bike-free, tells me he’s thinking of changing his job.
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