BH LAPEROUSE

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46 migrants rescued in two missions

In the night of Jan 16 and on Jan 17, 2024, the CROSS Gris-Nez was informed that several migrant boats were in difficulty in the strait of Pas-de-Calais. The emergency tug 'Abeille Normandie' was deployed to assist a boat in difficulty off the coast of Wimereux. 37 people were then rescued by the crew of the emergency tug and dropped off at the quay in Boulogne-sur-Mer. In the morning of Jan 17, the 'Lapérouse' was engaged for a boat whichwas in difficulty off the coast of Cayeux-sur-Mer. The crew rescued nine people. Several people still on board the boat refused the assistance offered and continued on their way. In connection with the CROSS Gris Nez, surveillance is maintained on the boat by on-site resources. The castaways were then dropped off in Boulogne-sur-Mer too, where they were taken care of by the shore based rescue services and the border police. In total, 46 people were rescued by the French means.

Laperouse involved in large scale SAR operation in English Chanel

In the night of Dec 13, 2022, a dozen migrant boats attempted to cross the Strait of Pas-de-Calais from the French coast to the British coast. Several of them, as well as people ashore, contacted the emergency services during the night. The CROSS Gris Nez joined with the MRCC of Dover in order to coordinate the response. At 03:02, the CROSS received a call from the association UTOPIA 56 transmitting the position of a precarious boat at 02:53 a.m. At 03:05 a.m., the CROSS thus contacted by VHF radio a commercial vessel which was sailing near the boat to inform it of its presence and ask it to relocate it. At 03:11 a.m., a first fishing vessel sailing in the same sector hearing this request, specified that the boat was heading northwest at 5.3 knots. At 03:13 a.m., the CROSS received an email from UTOPIA 56, recalling the inforamtion given by telephone at 03:02 a.m. Since 03:13, the MRCC of Dover and the CROSS Gris Nez were in permanent contact to have a shared situation on the crossings in progress. They exchanged in particular on the boat which had just been spotted 10 minutes before, en route to the northwest and which was going to enter the area of ​​competence of the MRCC of Dover. The MRCC said it was planning to task the RNLI to recover it. At 03:20 a.m., the fisherman who was approaching the boat could no longer do so, the latter being too close to a shoal; he then specified that he had visual contact with the boat heading northwest at a stable speed of 4.7 knots. The plastic craft was not detectable by radar, so the CROSS modeled a simulated track with SPATIONAV to track the craft. Ot also contacted a second fisherman, sailing on the other side of the shoal, in the British zone, asking him to keep a watchful eye. At 03:36 a.m. the modeling carried out made it possible to estimate that the boat had passed through the British zone. At 0421 a.m. the CROSS received a Mayday from Dover MRCC for a sinking craft with castaways overboard. The distress situation was discovered by a third fisherman, sailing further ashore west. A major rescue operation was launched, coordinated by the MRCC of Dover. It mobilized numerous British and French resources to carry out the rescue of the castaways. On the French side, in conjunction with the CROSS Gris-Nez, the BH 'Lapérouse' and a Dauphin helicopter of the French Navy were engaged in the search system from the middle of the night, alongside British resources. The 'Kermorvan' was deployed as reinforcement in the morning and remained in the area all day long on Dec 14. The BH 'Lapérouse' was relieved during the day by the BSAM 'Rhône' of the French Navy in the middle of the day. The Dauphin helicopter was stood down in the early morning. The search for any missing persons was suspended in the evening of Dec 14 after several hours of investigation of a very large area. According to the human toll transmitted by the British authorities, four migrants died in sea water temperatures of around 10 degrees, reducing the survival time of a castaway to less than two hours. The French authorities gave their full support and assistance to the British authorities throughout this operation.

133 migrants rescued in several missions

From Dec 10 to Dec 11, 2022, the CROSS Gris-Nez identified several boats in difficulty. In the evening of Dec 10, the BH 'Lapérouse' was engaged off Zuydcoote to assist a boat which first continued on its way and did not want assistance. But in the middle of the night, the weather conditions deteriorated, and the 'Lapérouse' saved the 47 people aboard. They were picked up and dropped off at the port of Calais. The emergency tug 'Abeille Normandie' was deployed in the early evening of Dec 10 off Blériot-Plage, where a boat requested assistance, along with the lifeboat 'Notre Dame du Risban' of the SNSM. In adverse weather, the tug rescued the 43 people aboard, who were dropped off late in the the evening at the quay in Boulogne. During the night, the tug was again deployed off Calais to save 43 shipwrecked people who were dropped off at the port of Calais in the morning of Dec 11. All migrants were taken care of by the border police and the departmental fire and rescue service.