More than 150 people rescued in English Channel after boat catches fire

Rescue boats from both France and the UK took part in the operation to evacuate passengers from the stricken vessel.Published On 4 Aug 20264 Aug 2026More than 150 migrants travelling to the United Kingdom in a boat across the English Channel have been rescued after the vessel caught fire.A major rescue operation was launched on Tuesday morning near the French port of Boulogne-sur-Mer, with both French and British authorities working to evacuate those on board, some of whom had jumped into the sea.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3UK PM Burnham vows to be ‘relentless’ on Channel migrant crossingslist 2 of 3How Israel and the European far right tried to exploit Ceutalist 3 of 3Why does Spain have ‘enclaves’ in North Africa?end of listThe local French maritime prefecture said five of the 157 people on board had requested rescue overnight and were evacuated. It said the remaining passengers refused assistance and the boat continued its journey towards the UK, until the engine caught fire and all those on board were rescued.Since Andy Burnham became UK prime minister two weeks ago, more than 2,000 people have crossed the English Channel in small boats.Immigration is an extre...