More than 43 people had been rescued, with over 30 of them pulled from the water. In the frigid waters between Kent and France, a massive search and rescue operation was launched. The incident was described as “truly tragic” by the government. Suella Braverman, the Home Secretary, said her “heartfelt thoughts” were with those involved and that she was being kept informed as agencies responded and established the facts. The boat was most likely carrying migrants risking the crossing from France, as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced new measures to “stop the boats” the day before. The small boat is believed to have sunk around 3 a.m. off the coast of Dungeness, 30 miles west of Dover. The UK coastguard, the French Navy, and an air ambulance were all dispatched to assist with the rescue effort. A fishing boat was also present, as were coastguard helicopters from Lydd and Lee on Solent. South East Coast Ambulance Service said it was called after hearing about the incident and dispatched crews to Dover, Kent, to assist with the follow-up operation. The search and rescue operation will continue all day. As the weather changes, a second incident is rapidly unfolding, with migrants reported to have overboarded while being transferred to a Border Force vessel. Temperatures dropped to 1°C overnight on Tuesday, and it was likely even colder out at sea. A yellow ice weather warning was in effect across Kent at the time. Dover MP Natalie Elphicke said she was “very saddened” to learn of the tragedy and expressed her condolences to all those involved. This latest search and rescue operation follows a fatal incident in November 2021, when at least 27 migrants died after a dinghy capsized while travelling from France to the United Kingdom. So far this year, nearly 45,000 people have travelled. The tragedy, according to Tim Naor Hilton of the charity Refugee Action, was predictable and unavoidable, and more people would die trying to reach safety if the government did not create more routes for people to claim asylum.