UK coastguard ‘left Channel migrants adrift’ in lead-up to mass drowning

Investigation reveals that at least 440 people appear to have been abandoned in the weeks before the worst Channel disaster in 30 years

Read more: Horror beyond words': how Channel distress calls were ignored'

Hundreds of vulnerable migrants were abandoned to their fates after the UK coastguard effectively ignored" reports of small boats in distress during the days leading up to the worst Channel disaster in 30 years when at least 27 people died, an Observer investigation suggests.
Around 440 people appear to have been left adrift after the coastguard sent no rescue vessels to 19 reported boats carrying migrants in UK waters, according to an analysis of internal records and marine data seen by the Observer and Liberty Investigates.

Experts said the failure to act appears to breach international law.