African migrant killed by train near English Channel Tunnel

He is believed to be the 12th person killed in or around the Channel Tunnel entrance in Calais since the refugee crisis erupted earlier this year.

A spokesman for Eurotunnel in France said paramedics were called after an unconscious body was found near the railway tracks.

The victim appeared to be between the ages of 15 and 17 and might have been a native of Sudan or Eritrea, the spokesperson said.

A young African was killed by a freight train near the entrance of the Channel tunnel in the port of Calais, France overnight.

The young man was thought to be of Sudanese or Eritrean nationality, they said. “But unfortunately it does demonstrate again the risks that are associated with trying to cross to the United Kingdom illegally”. About a dozen migrants are know to have died trying to reach Britain from France through the tunnel.

Several accidents have involved the Channel Tunnel, where people have been electrocuted, crushed by a freight lorry and fatally injured in falls. Meanwhile in Calais, French riot police have moved in to clear the refugee camps sprung up around the coastal town, firing tear gas and bulldozing the tent cities into the ground.