Calais 'Jungle': Demolition crews pull down migrant camp
October 25 2016 - http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-37759032
Crews have begun dismantling the "Jungle" migrant camp in Calais with sledgehammers as its inhabitants leave by coach for other parts of France.
Workers in hard hats and orange jumpsuits pulled down unoccupied tents and shacks by hand.
More than 4,000 people have now been moved away from the camp since the evictions started on Monday.
The Jungle has become a key symbol of Europe's migration crisis, home to some 7,000 residents in squalid conditions.
The operation to close the camp has been largely peaceful so far, but concerns remain that some migrants will refuse to give up their attempts to cross the Channel to the UK.
The French authorities said they were prioritising departures on Tuesday morning, but demolition started shortly after 15:00 local time (14:00 BST).
Crews tore down wooden shacks with sledgehammers and used diggers to move away debris.
The work is expected to be carried out mostly by hand, and in a low-key manner, as officials believe sending in bulldozers at this point would send the wrong message to migrants.
Officials are keen for them to get on buses voluntarily.
The Calais police commissioner says the camp will be fully cleared by Friday and that only about 200 people are expected to try to stay.
Officials say a total of more than 4,014 migrants have been taken away over the past two days.
On Tuesday 1,264 adults were taken to shelters around France, where they will be given the opportunity to claim asylum or face deportation, and 372 unaccompanied children were taken to "provisional reception centres" within the camp.
However, the charity Save the Children has voiced concern for what it says are hundreds of unaccompanied children who have been unable to register for the shelters and have nowhere safe to stay during the demolition.
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Photo I: The demolition operation started on Monday afternoon // Photo II: Some shacks were set on fire crews moved in to tear down the makeshift camp // Photo III: Sudanese migrants, who left the Calais camp on Monday, stand near temporary accommodation in Talence, south-west France
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Steven H MacDowall
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