Migrants risking their lives at Calais

Migrants were risking life and limb trying to clamber aboard UK-bound trucks in Calais, France, with some saying they will do whatever it takes to cross the Channel.

French police had reportedly found 350 migrants hidden in cars and trucks between 6am and 10am yesterday. As trucks slowed in queueing traffic on the main road leading to the Port of Calais, migrants swarmed around them in an effort to stow away.

One was seen to climb on to a lorry’s roof, while two others managed to break in to the back of a slow-moving HGV with the help of a third migrant.

One migrant, a 20-year-old Syrian called Yazan, said: “My future would be better if I get to England. I came here via Turkey and Greece and now I’m living in the jungle in Calais. The situation here is very bad.

“But life in Syria was worse. Our homes were destroyed and our government used chemical weapons against us. I need a better life in England and I will do whatever it takes.”

Polish trucker Martin Szczygielski, 33, said the migrant situation had reached crisis point, and lorry drivers faced daily threats of intimidation and fines. He said: “My friend had four immigrants in his truck and the police gave him a £2,000 (€2,800) fine, but it was not his fault because he checked the trailer. It’s very hard and dangerous to earn a living here.”

The scenes came 24 hours after chaos in Calais as the Channel Tunnel was shut and migrants exploited a wildcat strike by French ferry workers by trying to board UK-bound trucks.

French ferry protesters burned tyres and hay bales, gridlocking roads leading to the port, while migrants tried to take advantage of slowing and stationary lorries by clambering on board.

Aid workers have reported a “catastrophic” situation, with predictions that 2,000 more migrants displaced from war-torn countries including Eritrea, Syria and Afghanistan could arrive over the summer.