Calais crisis: 2,000 migrants storm Eurotunnel causing travel chaos

A group of 2,000 migrants rushed the French side of the Channel Tunnel in the early hours of Tuesday 28 July), Eurotunnel has said.

The news comes a day after two Sudanese migrants went to hospital after being hit near the tunnel in Calais by trains. In a separate incident four days ago, a teenager was found dead on top of a train.

Home Secretary Theresa May pledged £7m (€9.8m, $10.9m) in UK government funding to strengthen security on the Calais, France, side of the Eurotunnel on 28 July. The train company asked the UK to contribute the money earlier in the month.

May met with France's interior minister to discuss how the two governments will respond to the migrant issue before she made the announcement.

An update on the Home Office website warns UK travellers "there is an ongoing possibility of disruption to cross-Channel services as a result of industrial action and migrant activity in and around Calais".

Roughly 5,000 migrants from Africa and the Middle East — including Ethiopia, Eritrea, Sudan and Afghanistan — are camping out near the French side of the tunnel and many have been attempting to sneak into lorries as they wait to cross to the UK.

The migrants broke through a fence and attempted to board Eurotunnel's freight trains. The company needed to call in its full security force and police to regain control of the train yard.