Drowned migrant’s friends: We won’t stop trying to get to the UK
FRIENDS of the Sudanese refugee who drowned trying to cross the Channel in an inflatable dinghy say his death has not dissuaded them from attempting the perilous voyage.
Abdulfatah Hamdallah died in the early hours of Thursday when a shovel being used as an oar punctured the flimsy boat which he and an unnamed man were trying to row to Britain.
The body of the 28-year-old, who could not swim, was found on a beach near Sangatte. Abu Bakr, 19, who comes from the same war-torn Darfur region of Sudan as Abdulfatah, said he had twice tried to cross the Channel, and will try again.
‘I knew Abdulfatah. He was a nice person,’ he said. ‘He was always happy but he really wanted to get out of Calais and go to England.
‘That’s why he set off in that small boat when he couldn’t swim. He was always a bit crazy, but happy.’
Like Abdulfatah, whose nickname was Wajdi, Abu lives in a refugee camp on a disused industrial site near the Calais ferry port.
‘I’ve tried two times and I’ll try again. I’ll never give up trying,’ he said. ‘I don’t have much money so I have to do it on my own. Even though Wajdi has died, I will still try.’
Abdullah Mohammed, 22, also from Darfur, said: ‘I am upset about Wajdi, but I’ve tried several times to cross the Channel. The last time was ten or 12 days ago when the sea was calm. We had a small boat with three persons. We paddled and then a big ship passed and its waves turned our boat over. We had to swim two kilometres back to the beach holding on to the boat.’
Another Sudanese migrant, Ali Adam, 19, added: ‘There is no life here in France for us. I’ve been in Calais for five months. I will get to England any way possible. I’m just waiting for a chance.’