Migrant boat capsizes in English Channel; dozens feared dead

Authorities say a boat carrying migrants has capsized in the English Channel while attempting to cross from France to Britain, killing an unspecified number of people

PARIS -- A boat carrying migrants capsized Wednesday in the English Channel while attempting to cross from France to Britain, killing an unspecified number of people, French authorities said. Dozens were feared dead.

Although officials offered few confirmed details, it appeared to be one of the deadliest days in the channel in recent memory. Britain's prime minister convened a meeting of the government's crisis committee, and France's interior minister rushed to see survivors in a Calais hospital. The two governments have been at odds over how to prevent the increasingly dangerous migrant crossings.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who was holding a meeting of the government’s crisis committee, COBRA, in response to the channel tragedy, said he was “shocked, appalled and deeply saddened."

“I think the details are still coming in, but more than 20 people have lost their lives," Johnson said.