Calais migrant crisis arrives in Midlands as dramatic footage shows 'stowaways' cutting free from lorry in Stourbridge

Central
West Midlands
Chris Halpin
World
Saturday 1 August 2015 at 9:02am

Lorries have remained parked as part of Operation Stack on the M20 with Channel crossings severely disrupted. Credit: PA

A video has emerged of three suspected migrants from Calais escaping from a lorry in Stourbridge in the Black Country.

The footage shows the men cutting a hole in the canvas of the vehicle before leaping out to take their first steps on British soil.

West Midlands Police say they were unaware of the incident which happened on Tuesday 250 miles from the French port.

Meanwhile a removal firm in Aldridge has described the moment they found 13 stowaways in one of their lorries.

Late last year a driver from MoveCorp heard banging from inside his trailer once it had arrived in the UK from France.

But when they informed the authorities, the company were fined £18,000, accused of not carrying out proper checks which allowed the migrants to board their vehicle.

Driver Jason Birkett has just returned from Calais and described the mood among drivers as 'very stressed'. Credit: ITV News Central

In the last week another of the firm's drivers Jason Birkett has arrived back from Calais.

He says he now dreads crossing across the Channel using the Dover to Calais - Calais to Dover route, and if he could easily go any other way then he would.

Hundreds of migrants have been trying to storm the Channel Tunnel terminal in France each night this week. Credit: PA

Jason says he also fears for his life, as sometimes migrants throw blocks of wood and bricks at lorries in order for them to slow down, as they attempt to force open the trailers to stowaway.

Here he shows our reporter Chris Halpin how those desperately trying to illegally get to Britain try to break into lorries.

Meanwhile speaking at an emergency COBRA cabinet meeting David Cameron pledged more support for the French authorities to deal with the crisis, but warned it could last the entire summer.

The meeting came a day after he said that a "swarm" of migrants were coming across the Mediterranean "seeking a better life" because we have "jobs, a growing economy and it's an incredible place to live".

Queues on the M20 in Kent - known as Operation Stack. Credit: PA

Police and social services in Kent are already struggling to cope with the impact of an unprecedented surge in migrants attempting to reach the UK.

Operation Stack, which turns the M20 into a giant lorry park as a result of chaos on the other side of the Channel, has hit tourists, businesses and lorry drivers.