Up to 25 suspected migrants rescued off Kent coast
One of two boats found by Border Force authorities had eight children - some as young as two years old - on board.
Sunday 12 May 2019 14:29, UK
Up to 25 suspected migrants - including eight children - have been rescued off the coast of Kent, according to Sky sources.
One boat was thought to be carrying five adults and eight children - some as young as two years old. They were rescued by a lifeboat in Dover.
It is understood that Border Force was deployed to intercept a second vessel, which was carrying up to 12 adults and heading towards Folkstone.
Both incidents were caught on camera.
Fisherman David Catt, who witnessed the rescue, said: "We were heading out into the Channel to go fishing went we spotted a small vessel in the distance.
"When we got closer we could see there were about five adults and eight children in there - some of them couldn't have been more than two years old.
"It's a nice sunny day and conditions are calm, so it would have been a good time to make the crossing. But it's still very cold out there and the poor children were soaked through and so cold.
"After the lifeboat picked them up we were heading back out to go fishing and we saw another small vessel with about 10 to 12 men in it heading in the direction of Folkestone."
A Home Office spokesperson confirmed Border Force had dealt with "two small boat incidents" off the Kent coast, adding: "Further details will be provided once the situations have been resolved."
"Anyone crossing the Channel in a small boat is taking a huge risk with their life and the lives of their children.
"Since the home secretary declared a major incident in December we have agreed a joint action plan with France and increased activity out of the Joint Coordination and Information Centre in Calais.
"It is an established principle that those in need of protection should claim asylum in the first safe country they reach."
It comes after 16 suspected migrants - including two children - were picked up crossing the Channel yesterday.
French authorities alerted Border Force to the small boat heading towards Kent in the early hours of the morning.
The Home Office said they were believed to be from Iran and Iraq.
Earlier this month, seven suspected migrants, who said they were Iranian, were found off the Kent coast and handed over to immigration officers.
The incident on 2 May came a day after 13 suspected migrants, who also said they were Iranian, travelled towards the UK in two small boats.
They were later intercepted by police in the Port of Dover.