Child among at least five migrants who died trying to cross English Channel

At least five people have died while trying to cross the English Channel this morning.

One child, believed to be a four-year-old girl, is among the dead, according to a local charity.

The migrants were attempting to travel over the busy stretch of water after leaving from a patch of shoreline near the French town of Wimereux.

Local police were operating at a beach in the area today, with the French coast guard saying there were several ‘lifeless bodies’.

A spokesperson said it has been a ‘busy’ morning for crossings and its agents continued to be patrolling the sea.

Olivier Ternicien, president of Bolougne-based migrant charity Osmose 62, said: ‘A child has died. A third helicopter has just arrived, we fear the worst.’

French Navy intervention tug the Abeille Normandie had picked up around 100 migrants from the sea by 10am before taking them to the nearby port of Boulogne.