France dismantles camp for migrants

CALAIS, France — Workers in hard hats and orange jumpsuits on Tuesday started dismantling a makeshift camp in France that has become a symbol of Europe’s migrant crisis, as thousands of people remained there waiting to be relocated.

The workers used their gloved hands to tear down flimsy plywood shelters, tarp-covered huts and other temporary buildings at the camp in the port city of Calais that’s known as “the jungle.” Backhoes, construction dumpsters and trucks carted off the debris.

The demolition took place under the watch of police officers as authorities are emptying the camp of an estimated 6,300 people who have been living there, down from a height of 10,000 during the summer. Officials said the demolition work would be lengthy given the delicate task of clearing the camp by hand and with small machines. Extra precautions are being taken to make sure no one is inside the structures.

AP/MATT DUNHAM Crews start to demolish shelters Tuesday in the makeshift migrant camp known as “the jungle” near Calais, northern France.