END THIS TIDE OF MISERY

No10 urged to stop deadly trips | Scenes should 'shame' powerful

- BY DAVE BURKE

UP to his neck in freezing water with a terrified child clinging to him for dear life, an asylum seeker tries to board a flimsy dinghy he hopes will carry them to a life of safety.

Other harrowing images show kids struggling in the sea with the packed vessel behind them and men clinging to each other as they wade out to it.

The scenes lay bare the extent of the crisis as desperate people fleeing wars and persecution turn to greedy people smugglers in a bid to escape - only to be plunged into a fresh nightmare.

Dozens of men, women and children were seen trying to clamber aboard the dinghy off the French coast yesterday to make the perilous journey to Britain.

Campaigners last night urged the government to act and bring small boats crossings to an end to save lives.

At least 15 people have died so far this year trying to make the dangerous journey. There were 78 fatalities in 2024.

On May 21 a woman and her son, believed to be eight, were found dead in an overcrowded boat.