At least 180 migrants have died attempting to cross the English Channel in small boats since 2018, according to figures released to the Sunday Express. Researchers at the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford, who compiled the data, have warned that the true scale of the tragedy could be considerably higher.
Senior Researcher Dr Mihnea Cuibus said “the real toll may be higher than available numbers suggest”. He explained that around 80% of recorded deaths occurred at sea, either while migrants were trying to board vessels or once they were already on board.
Difficult to determine circumstances
Dr Cuibus added that most other incidents were only recorded after bodies were found on the beach, making it difficult to determine the exact circumstances of death. In a few cases, migrants died on inland canals in Northern France while their boat was making its way out to sea.
He said: “In many cases, there is limited information on who the victims were, or in what circumstances they died. Some incidents likely remain unrecorded, meaning that the real toll may be higher than available numbers suggest.”
IOM records 382 deaths since 2014
Separate data from the UN International Organization for Migration (IOM), which has measured deaths both on land and at sea since 2014, shows at least 382 fatalities on routes from mainland Europe to the UK. This includes 31 women and 43 children.
An IOM spokesperson said: “Since records began in 2014, IOM’s Missing Migrants Project has recorded 382 deaths on routes from mainland Europe to the UK, including in the English Channel, on land before departure and in the Eurotunnel. This includes 31 women and 43 children.”
Of the 382 people recorded, 363 remains were recovered and 19 people went missing at sea. The deadliest year recorded for the Channel was 2024, when 85 people died or went missing, with a further 22 deaths recorded so far in 2026.
Drowning is the most common cause
Dr Cuibus and his colleagues found that drowning accounts for more than three quarters of recorded victims. Others die from crushing and suffocation, either on overcrowded boats or during a scramble at boarding.
Around three quarters of recorded victims were men, similar to migrants who successfully reach the UK. Nationality data is only available for half of all recorded deaths, though it largely matches the main countries of origin among small boat arrivals, with Eritrea, Afghanistan and Iraq the top countries of origin among victims.
