by Caroline Gregory, On location
A fire broke out in the Calais ‘Jungle’ refugee camp last night, destroying around 40 shelters in the Sudanese area. The cause of the fire is so far unclear, although the cold weather has led many residents to use gas stoves inside flimsy tents made of flammable materials.
Fire fighters were slow to respond, enabling the blaze to spread quickly between the closely packed shelters. There were some minor injuries which were treated by volunteers on the ground.