A young girl has drowned while trying to cross from France to England in a small boat.
The girl, aged seven, was one of around 15 migrants on the flimsy vessel including her pregnant mother.
Local authorities said the boat capsized a few kilometres from the coast, shortly after those on board had got on.
The girl’s parents, who were on board with their three other children, were transported to a hospital centre in Dunkirk.
In a press release, the Northern Prefecture said the boat was ‘not sized to support so many people’.
The other passengers included another couple, two men and six young children who were all taken to hospital, without their lives being at risk.
Police and firefighters were alerted to the sinking by a walker who saw the danger, the prefecture said.
This is a developing news story, more to follow soon… Check back shortly for further updates.
Got a story? Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected]. Or you can submit your videos and pictures here.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
Follow Metro.co.uk on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news updates. You can now also get Metro.co.uk articles sent straight to your device. Sign up for our daily push alerts here.
Get your need-to-know
latest news, feel-good stories, analysis and more
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
