Two people have died and two more have been injured attempting to cross the Channel in a small boat, French authorities confirmed, because the English Channel remains a body of water and not, despite what some seem to believe, a welcome mat.

The deaths occurred during an overnight crossing from the French coastal town of Berck towards England's south coast. Authorities in the Pas-de-Calais area said one man in his 30s and another in his 40s died. Two women were taken to hospital after suffering burns over large parts of their bodies, which is what happens when you're desperate enough to board an overcrowded dinghy in the dark.

A spokesperson for the Pas-de-Calais prefecture said: "An investigation has been opened by the Boulogne-sur-Mer public prosecutor's office to determine the circumstances surrounding the deaths." François-Xavier Lauch, the prefect of Pas-de-Calais, thanked all services involved, particularly the firefighters, for their intervention and commitment during this operation - a sentence that sounds considerably more noble when you remember what they were responding to.

Meanwhile, on England's south coast, 12 anti-migrant protesters were arrested in Gosport, Hampshire, after what police described as "violent disorder." The protesters had gathered to oppose the rescue of nearly 150 more people on a second vessel, because nothing says "I care about my community" quite like assaulting the emergency workers trying to save lives.

Anticipating the arrival of another boat, demonstrators gathered in Gosport on Sunday night. It was the second time protesters had targeted the town amid rumours of rescued people disembarking there. A crowd of about 350 people had gathered, and a handful of officers were treated at the scene for minor injuries.

Hampshire and Isle of Wight police said there had been assaults on a police officer and on an emergency worker, as well as affray and racially aggravated public order offences. Twelve arrests, in case you were counting.

Simon Dodds, an assistant chief constable, said: "Violence and criminal damage have no part in peaceful protest. Our position on this has been clear that we will investigate thoroughly and take robust action against anyone responsible."

He added: "Last night saw a number of incidents that were clearly not peaceful protest, rather violent public disorder, and this will not be tolerated as we work to keep our wider communities in Hampshire and on the Isle of Wight safe."

Dodds also noted that officers did not deserve to be assaulted as they worked to ensure the safety of everyone in the area, nor did they or anyone from partner agencies deserve to be singled out online or subjected to abuse via social media. The police will work with colleagues across policing to address any online threats - presumably with the same energy they apply to everything else.

There were similar scenes last month when protesters gathered in the area expecting migrants to arrive on a dinghy, but they were ultimately taken to Dover by sea. The protesters, one assumes, were devastated.

On Sunday evening, several rescued people were seen arriving at a marina in Gosport after being transported onboard two RNLI boats. Their dinghy was shadowed by French rescue vessels while in the Channel until it was met by RNLI boats in English waters, according to ship tracking data.

The Home Office said 149 people were believed to be onboard. It said: "The Border Security Command works around the clock to protect our border. We have established contingency plans to make sure we can securely disembark, check and process all small boat arrivals. Migrants will be transported to short-term holding facilities in Kent, where they will be processed as normal and undergo stringent health, security and biometric checks."

Departures from so far west on the northern French coast have been rare in recent years, but this is the third such crossing in a month. In September, British rescue boats collected passengers off a dinghy that had spent about 30 hours at sea after setting off from Normandy.

The 51 people, who refused help from the French coastguard, arrived in Dover after being transferred to Border Security Command boats. It had been expected they would be taken to Gosport, with hundreds of protesters gathering after coaches and ambulances were seen in the area. Six people were arrested by officers that evening.

The provisional total for Channel crossings this year is 19,451. This is down 43% on this time last year and 23% below the figure at the same time in 2024 - a statistic that will presumably be cold comfort to the families of the two men who died.