Fresh fires break out at Calais 'Jungle' camp

CALAIS: Fresh fires broke out Wednesday in the "Jungle" camp on the second day of operations to tear down the squalid settlement in northern France, sending migrants fleeing with their meagre belongings.

Huge clouds of black smoke billowed over the sprawling camp near Calais where up to 4,000 migrants remain as authorities continue to evacuate residents and dismantle their makeshift dwellings.

"You have to leave," an aid worker shouted. "You have these gas canisters in your caravan, get them out!"

A volunteer´s SUV could be seen leaving the camp with more than 10 gas cylinders loaded onto a trailer. Meanwhile, a van belonging to a charity caught fire. 

Around half of the camp´s estimated population of 6,000 to 8,000 migrants have been transferred out since Monday, boarding buses to centres around France.

Nearly 800 unaccompanied minors have been moved to shipping containers converted into temporary shelters in the Jungle, according to the interior ministry. 

France says expects to finish emptying ´Jungle´ Wednesday

French authorities said Wednesday they expect to complete operations to clear the "Jungle" camp of its migrant population by the evening.

"We have it within our means to close the waiting lines by this evening," senior local official Fabienne Bucco told AFP. "After the last migrants are taken in hand, the lines will close."