One dead as desperate migrants try to storm Eurotunnel terminal again

In France’s Port of Calais, thousands of migrants – including many refugees from Africa and the Middle East – have set up camp not far from the entrance to the Channel tunnel, which connects France and Great Britain. Observers say their push to enter the 50-kilometer undersea tunnel intensified in recent weeks after authorities stepped up port security to block migrants from stowing away on Britain-bound vessels.

Authorities in London were planning emergency talks over the migrant crisis, which has now claimed nine lives since June and sparked major travel disruption in a peak European holiday season.

“This exceptional migratory situation has dramatic human consequences”, Bernard Cazeneuve, the French interior minister, said Wednesday.

THE Government is continuing to resist calls for troops to be sent to Calais in a bid to prevent migrants storming the Channel Tunnel.

He told reporters: “We heard that one guy died last night and we know it’s very unsafe, but there is not another way to go the UK“.

Some firms in the area are also reporting huge falls in customers as Operation Stack causes queues of traffic to form outside their businesses. French police theorised that he was probably crushed by a lorry during the chaos.

“He was hit by a lorry which was preparing to drive on to the train, and is thought to have died instantly, ‘ said a police source in Calais, who said “hundreds of officers” were involved in a second night of ‘massive intrusions”.

A migrant has been killed in the latest incursion on the Channel Tunnel, as operator Eurotunnel reveals it has blocked more than 37,000 people attempting to cross into the UK this year. There were conflicting reports on the number involved Wednesday, ranging from 150 to as many as 1,200.

Every night, hundreds of migrants make desperate attempts to enter the Eurotunnel premises in order to get to Britain, seen as an Eldorado.

On his part, the firm’s CEO, Jacques Gounon, said his organization was up against “systematic, massive, maybe even organized invasions”.

He said: “We need more help with security at this site”.

More than 3,000 asylum seekers, mostly from Eritrea, Ethiopia and Afghanistan have camped outside the Eurotunnel in Calais, trying to make a dash to Britain as soon as they get a chance.

Sailings from the Port of Dover continued, with P&O Ferries running full services to Calais and DFDS operating a full schedule to Dunkirk and Calais.

“One of the things we’re doing is pressing to ensure we can get the security fencing up as quickly as possible to reduce this problem”, British Home Secretary Theresa May said.

The British government has agreed to provide an extra $11 million in funds for measures to improve security at Calais. British authorities said they had agreed with the French to work together on returning the migrants to their countries of origin, particularly in West Africa, although no details were given about how this would work.

British Prime Minister David Cameron, speaking during his visit to Singapore, described the crisis as “very concerning”, but that there was no point in “pointing fingers of blame”.