Four migrants have died after a boat capsized during an attempt to cross the English Channel, reports BBC News.
Overnight, a navy patrol boat reported that migrants had fallen into the sea off the coast of Boulogne-sur-Mer in northern France.
Four people found "unconscious" could not be saved, police added, while 63 were rescued.
UK Home Secretary Yvette Cooper described the incident as "truly awful".
The coastguard said several people fell into the sea after part of their boat "deflated".
The initial alert was raised at 04:30 local time, with a helicopter arriving about 30 minutes later. It found several people "drifting in the water while others were still clinging to the broken rubber dingy".
Fourteen people were rescued by a fishing vessel and 49 others by the French navy ship, the coastguard said.
"All the shipwrecked individuals were then brought ashore in Boulogne and taken care of by the emergency services on land."
Two boats, one from UK sea rescue charity RNLI and one from Border Force, were initially sent from Dover to provide support but were not required to attend the scene, the UK coastguard said.
Jacques Billant, prefect of the Pas-de-Calais region, told reporters nine people were in serious condition.
He said only one person on board was wearing a life jacket, while "a few others had bike tubes".
"Week after week, we observe overloaded boats like this morning's, boats of very poor quality: under inflated, without a floor, without life jackets," he said.
"These are also underpowered boats, which obviously increase the risks of breakdown and sinking."