A child died and 65 people were saved when a boat with migrants sank while trying to cross the English Channel.

PARIS — French maritime authorities said a child died and 65 people had to be rescued on Friday when a boat carrying migrants sank while trying to cross the English Channel towards Britain.

Late on Thursday evening, French rescuers noticed that the overloaded boat was in trouble and several people were in the sea. In a statement, French maritime authorities said rescuers pulled them from the water using semi-rigid boats and rescued 65 people.

During the search, rescuers found an unconscious child, who was later pronounced dead by a doctor.

The rescued migrants were taken back to the French port of Boulogne-sur-Mer, where they were treated by health services and border guards.

A series of shipwrecks made 2024 the deadliest year in recent years on the English Channel. Four migrants, including a two-year-old child, died earlier this month in two separate accidents while attempting to cross the border similarly.

Last month, at least 20 migrants died in several ship disasters in the English Channel.

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