Nineteen people rescued in the English Channel after their inflatable boat took on water are being questioned by immigration officials.
A coastguard helicopter took part in the operation, along with lifeboats from Dungeness and Littlestone.
Coastguard rescue teams from Dungeness and Folkestone were also involved.
A call for help was made off the coast of Dymchurch in Kent at 11.40pm on Saturday. The inflatable boat, with 19 on board, was found at 2am.
Calais coastguard organisation SNSM assisted in the operation, according to its president Bernard Barron.
He said: "We were called for help... with a boat carrying about 20 people between Calais and Dover.
"The castaways, who were migrants, called their families, who then alerted the authorities and rescue missions were triggered on both sides of the Channel."
Mr Barron added: "This confirms our fears: the smugglers are willing to take extreme measures, but the Channel is a real highway, presenting a great danger for this type of crossing."
Those on board on the boat were later being looked after by the Border Force.
Kent Police said: "The matter has been passed to Home Office immigration enforcement."
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