Two Polish men try to cross Channel in rowing boat

The RNLI had to rescue two Polish men attempting to row across the Channel yesterday (Wednesday).

It is thought that the two men were using a stolen rowing boat to cross the water to France having had no luck finding work in Britain, the Telegraph reported.

The men had not made much progress by the time the RNLI caught up with them.

James Clapham, a member of staff at Dover Lifeboat station, said: "They were trying to make it to Calais, but with the strong breeze and incoming tide they didn't get very far" the Daily Mail reports.

It seems they had travelled just two miles of the 21-mile Channel stretch before being stopped.

The men from Poland are said to have told the crew of Dover Lifeboat station that they "had no money".

Spokesperson for H M Coastguard, Maggie Hill, said: "We were called at 7.25am from a member of the public who said there was a rowing boat with two people who were not making much headway."

"It was not a normal vessel to be in that area and it is unusual to see two men in a rowing boat heading out to sea with a headwind but not making any progress."

The police were also called to the scene at around 9am and after the pair were returned to shore they were taken in for questioning by UK Border Force staff, Kent Online reports.

A Kent police spokesman said: "We were trying to locate the owner of the boat, which was believed to be stolen."

International borders on the other side of the Channel have been struggling as well recently with huge amounts of migrants trying to make their way to the UK via Calais, France.

Last year the Telegraph reported that many haulage firms have warned their drivers not to stop within a 100-mile radius of the French port to avoid illegal migrants stowing themselves in their lorries to make the journey to England.

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