Whistleblower lifts the lid on what happens at sea when the UK Border Force picks up asylum seekers – making SHOCKING claims about rescue operations…. 

WATCHMAN has been talking to a source who works with the Border Force on Channel migrant rescue operations. Contracted by CWind LTD  a company hired by the Home Office to help pick up migrants at the ‘half way line’ between French and British waters and escort them safely to the UK, he has been on numerous call-outs. Watchman checked his credentials, and can confirm that he is a genuine insider. We’ll call him ‘Boat Man.’ 

THIS IS THE FIRST EVER ACCOUNT OF WHAT HAPPENS ON BORDER FORCE VESSELS DURING CHANNEL MIGRANT RESCUE OPERATIONS. 

No journalist has ever been allowed to witness the way panicking asylum seekers are helped out of their dangerously overcrowded dinghies onto rescue ships and escorted to the UK for “processing.”

Judging from what our whistleblower had to say, there are many reasons why the UK government would NEVER let the media observe this process. 

We are talking grown men screaming in terror; dinghies full of vomit and urine; migrants HISSING at British rescuers; and sometimes, most upsettingly of all, DEAD BODIES. 

REVEALED: WHAT REALLY HAPPENS DURING CHANNEL MIGRANT RESCUES

As Watchman has personally observed, when Channel migrants set off from the beaches of northern France, they are forced to wade or swim out to waiting dinghies. Within seconds, many are out of their depth, struggling to keep their heads above freezing waters. As waves crash over them, hauling themselves onto Rigid Inflatable Boats (RIBS) while fully clothed takes considerable strength. Many fail at this first hurdle, and are forced to stagger back to the French beaches, where charity workers greet them with hot drinks and blankets. 

Asylum seekers that DO make it aboard may or may not be wearing life jackets. Bizarrely, some appear to be using novelty inflatables. 

According to Boat Man, unicorns are a favourite. He describes how migrants wearing children’s unicorn rings as buoyancy aids are heard “screaming” in the distance, then “jump for joy” as Border Force vessels pull alongside their overcrowded boats. When they are confident of rescue, they start throwing things into the sea, including unicorn inflatables. 

Boat Man: “Blow up unicorns are extremely common. The first thing they do when we arrive is throw the unicorns into the water. We chuck them a line, and we say forcefully to them: ‘Pull! You!’ We speak English to them and the way we address them is very stern. You’ve got to be.” 

RESCUERS APPEAL FOR ‘CROWD CONTROL’ TRAINING AS BOATS GET BIGGER 

Up until recently, the typical migrant boat had 60–70 passengers. Over the past year, the RIBS have been getting bigger. These days, it is not uncommon for rescuers to deal with 100 or more passengers on a single vessel. By the time Border Force reaches the distressed passengers, the boats are sometimes literally buckling under the weight of their human cargo. According to our source, many of the RIBS (which are generally manufactured in China) are so badly made they are like ‘lilos with engines.” After hours at sea, the boats, which are not designed for long journeys in rough water, are awash with vomit and urine. 

BOAT MAN: “These boats are rammed. By the time we get to them, the passengers are usually exhausted, terrified, and very dehydrated. The screams send a shiver down your spine. Some of the migrants are like the living dead. Once we get alongside, it’s carnage with everyone getting off. You have got to maintain crowd control. But rescue teams are not trained in crowd control. Staff have been asking for help. We don’t know how to manage these numbers.” 

HOUR BY HOUR: HOW MIGRANTS ARE RESCUED

Border Force personnel and contractors working on Channel migrant rescues are alerted to emergency call-outs by WhatsApp. According to Boat Man, at the beginning of each shift, they are told whether it is a “Green Day”; an “Amber Day” or a “Red Day.” On Green Days, when conditions at sea are too rough for crossings, staff ‘can effectively take the day off. Guaranteed, no work.” On Amber Days, when the weather is fair, they must remain within 90 minutes travel time of boarding a rescue vessel. On Red Days (very good sailing conditions), when many migrant crossings are expected, they must be on board rescue vessels from the start of their shift. For the purposes of migrant rescue operations, the Channel is divided into various zones. Border Force instruct the Ship Master (skipper) of each rescue vessel which zone to patrol on any given day. 

BOAT MAN: “They set sail, and then anchor in the zone in question, at which point, it’s a waiting game. The first thing the rescue team will see is either a French warship or the migrant vessel in the distance.” 

A typical rescue vessel is said to be made up of 10 Deck Marshalls, one Master and one Crewman. Additionally, Border Force supply a paramedic and a “CFI”, whose job it is to take photographs. According to our source, this vital task, designed to identify who is in charge of the dinghies and check whether any passengers are already known to authorities, is carried out with a “Nikon P1000 [camera] which is very basic.” The camera work is part of Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s efforts to ‘smash the gangs.’ However, according to Boat Man, amid the chaos at sea, with some passengers concealing their features behind bandanas and scarves, it is almost impossible to work out who is nominally in charge. “Basically, they never manage to identify the ‘Captain’. The boats are just too overcrowded,” he says. Once the dinghy is within reach of the rescue ship, passengers are ‘thrown a line’ – or rather, two lines: one at the bow and one at the stern. Passengers are then brought aboard the rescue ship via a stairway. They are "literally shoved up the stairs to a platform. Then we order them to sit with their legs spread, in rows of four or five, under a kind of bus shelter.”