The BBC has witnessed dramatic scenes on the beaches of Northern France this morning when a boat was destroyed by police moments before it set off for the UK carrying dozens of migrants and asylum seekers.
Officers intervened as men, women and children were about to leave the beach, slashing the boat with a knife as it sat in very shallow water.
All the people on board were able to make their way safely to shore.
With a sharp rise in numbers making the illegal crossing this year, the incident demonstrates the huge challenge that authorities face in trying to stop the smuggling operations that profit from the route, and the difficulties French police.
Officers are prevented by law from intervening once a boat is in the water, and operate on a very lengthy expanse of French coastline where crossings depart.
