French rescue workers swiftly packed up their gear, dismantling medical tents, stretchers, and security cordons with practiced precision. After the last bodies were removed from the quayside in Boulogne, the ambulances and red emergency vehicles departed, leaving a handful of officials standing near the harbour wall, amid frayed fishing nets.

“It’s so upsetting,” lamented Boulogne’s mayor, Frederic Cuvillier, reflecting on how the ongoing migrant crisis has reshaped and traumatized France’s northern coastline. On Tuesday, a boat carrying dozens of migrants sank off the coast in the English Channel, claiming the lives of 12 people, including six children and a pregnant woman.

“These people flee death only to meet it here. Mothers, children… believing they’ll find a better life across the Channel,” Cuvillier said, gesturing toward the grey sea.

In the wake of such tragedies, the reactions on either side of the Channel often differ significantly. In the UK, officials quickly condemn the smuggling gangs, framing each incident as the result of ruthless criminal operations, which they undeniably are. Smugglers continue to dangerously overfill flimsy boats, often with inadequate life jackets.

In northern France, the police share a similar focus, concentrating on patrolling their increasingly militarized coastline, now equipped with more personnel, night-vision tools, and special drones funded in part by British taxpayers. However, as they ramp up their efforts, smugglers adapt, launching boats from farther inland or from down the coast, forcing longer and more perilous journeys across the busy and treacherous waters of the Channel.

This evolving cat-and-mouse game between smugglers and authorities continues to put lives at risk, as desperate migrants make the dangerous journey in hopes of a better future.