At least 13 are dead after a boat with dozens of migrants sinks in waters off northern France

PARIS -- The mayor of a French coastal town being used in a rescue operation says 13 migrants are dead after their boat ripped apart Tuesday during an attempted crossing of the English Channel.

Dozens of people plunged into the treacherous waters.

“Unfortunately, the bottom of the boat ripped open,” said Olivier Barbarin, mayor of Le Portel near the fishing port of Boulogne-sur-Mer, where a first-aid post was set up to treat victims. “It’s a big drama.”

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.

A boat sank off France’s northern coast and plunged more than 50 migrants into the waters of the English Channel as they tried to cross it on Tuesday, and French maritime authorities said around a dozen people were recovered in critical condition.

The English Channel is a busy and often treacherous waterway. At least 30 migrants have died or gone missing while trying to cross to the U.K. this year, according to the International Organization for Migration.

The prefecture said the boat got into difficulty off Gris-Nez point and everyone aboard ended up in the water. Boats and aircraft were scrambled for the rescue operation and more than 50 people were picked up, the prefecture said. It had no other immediate information about injuries.

Medical teams were rushed to the scene and a first aid post was set up in the fishing port of Boulogne-sur-Mer, the prefecture said. Sea temperatures off northern France were around 20 degrees C, or about 68 F.

At least 2,109 migrants have tried to cross the English Channel on small boats in the past seven days, according to U.K. Home Office data updated Tuesday. The data includes people found in the channel or on arrival.

Europe’s increasingly strict asylum rule s, growing xenophobia and hostile treatment of migrants have been pushing them north.

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