Revealed: How 260 migrants tried to scramble on board 'mega-dinghy' that brought 230 to UK
At least 30 people were thrown into the English Channel as the dinghy began it's journey to England
The record-breaking ‘mega-dinghy’ which reached Britain with 230 migrants was originally carrying more than 260 passengers including children when it almost sank, it has emerged.
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As the boat – which was designed for a maximum of 40 people – was battered by choppy waters, at least 30 people were flung into the English Channel.
The new details of the perilous crossing emerged as ministers prepared for even more arrivals of large craft carrying hundreds of people across the Channel.
Multiple police and gendarmes watched as hundreds of people boarded the overloaded 'mega-dinghy' on Sunday.
French lifeboatmen described how scores of men, women and children originally boarded on a beach between Berck-sur-Mer and Merlimont, south of Le Touquet, on Sunday afternoon.
A spokesman for the SNSM voluntary sea rescue organisation – France’s equivalent of the RNLI – said all had been hiding in sand dunes, after paying people smugglers for a passage.
He said: "A veritable tide then rushed the approximately 15-meter (49ft) inflatable boat.
"Due to overloading, several people were thrown from the vessel – around thirty ended up in the water as the craft continued on its way."
Read more: 'No limit' to migrant mega-dinghies crossing the Channel, say French rescue teams
A photo released by the SNSM at Berck shows dozens of mainly young men floundering in the Channel, following the initial boarding soon after 5pm.
The statement continues: "The mass movement during boarding posed a major risk, especially given that many of those present could not swim.
"With the rising tide, part of the group quickly became cut off. Gendarmes and firefighters intervened to bring these individuals to safety."
The statement adds: "Coordinating all the deployed resources helped avert a tragedy during this particularly dangerous phase."
The China-made PVC boat was buckling in the sea under the weight of those on board, as a swell picked up but the craft still managed to get out into open sea, with at least 20 children on board.
An SNSM boat tracked the mega-dinghy from 5.15pm until 7.45pm, along with the Abeille Normandie [Normandy Bee], the French rescue ship, and – later – the Minck, another rescue boat.
There was no attempt to interfere with the boat, in line with a French policy of not risking lives by trying to stop boats at sea.
The SNSM spokesman said: "We are the sea rescuers. Our mission is to assist anyone in distress or danger at sea, regardless of the cause of the distress or the background of the person being rescued."
The mega-dinghy was eventually escorted to England by the UK Border Force, HM Coastguard and the RNLI, beating the previous record of 165 migrants who reached Britain on a single boat in July.
Last week, 173 people were packed on to a single boat, but it disintegrated off the French coast after catching fire, as everyone on board was rescued, some with minor burns.
The Egyptian people smuggler who piloted the boat has since been sentenced to a year in prison.
The 25-year-old man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was beginning his sentence in France on Saturday, following a fast-track trial held on Friday for ‘facilitating the illegal entry, movement, or stay of foreign nationals in France’ by ‘coordinating and piloting the departure on an inflatable boat’.
A judge also ruled that these acts were committed ‘under circumstances directly exposing the foreign nationals to an immediate risk of death or injuries likely to result in mutilation or permanent disability.’
Such crimes are punishable by up to five years in prison, and a fine equivalent to £26,000.
The man was told he would be deported from France after serving his sentence, and his mobile phone was confiscated permanently.
He continually denied any wrongdoing, arguing that he was a legitimate asylum seeker who wanted to settle in the UK.
Smugglers are said to have charged at least £1,000-a-head for a place on the 12meter boat that the man was piloting, ensuring a massive profit.
Government sources say the smugglers are being forced to resort to the 'mega-dinghies' to make the crossings financially viable due to smaller crossings being increasingly disrupted by police operations.
“Sustained pressure from law enforcement means the gangs are finding it harder to launch boats and are therefore being forced to place more people onto them,” said a government source.
The overall number of arrivals on small boats has fallen sharply this year. The provisional total for the year stands at 14,819, 43 per cent lower than at the same point last year.
The prime minister’s spokesperson said: “We’ve seen today some appalling images … of young babies being put into these unseaworthy craft — and they’re shocking images — and they show the reality behind the ruthless smuggling gangs that are prepared to risk human lives for profit.
“That’s exactly why the government has signed a new payment-by-results deal with the French to prevent these perilous journeys from happening in the first place. As the prime minister has said, we’re not complacent and we are bearing down on these crossings, and that’s reflected in the joint action that’s prevented 47,000 attempted crossings since the election.”