By Issy Ronald and Camille Knight, CNN(CNN) — More than 150 migrants were rescued in the early hours of Tuesday morning after a boat caught fire in the English Channel in an attempt to travel from France to Britain. The boat’s engine caught fire and its “condition deteriorated very rapidly,” forcing French and British coastguards to rescue 157 people, France’s maritime prefecture of the Channel and North Sea said. French authorities had already rescued five people from the boat overnight Monday. Often, they travel in overcrowded, barely seaworthy boats – like rigid-hulled inflatable boats, dinghies or kayaks. But such is their determination to reach the UK, they “routinely refuse assistance offered by French resources, only accepting help when faced with situations of extreme emergency,” said the French maritime prefecture.