A teenager who may have been trying to reach the UK has died after being hit by a train near the French entrance to the channel tunnel, an official told CNN on Thursday.
The boy was hit around 2 p.m. Thursday by a freight train carrying trucks at the Eurotunnel terminal in Calais, France, a spokesperson for the Calais Prefecture said.
The victim appeared to be between the ages of 15 and 17 and might have been a native of Sudan or Eritrea, the spokesperson said. He was found dead on the tracks, the official said.
Numerous people fleeing conflicts and poverty in the Middle East and North Africa gather near the French entrance to the channel tunnel, hoping to find their way into the UK. British news reports say the boy is the 11th person to have died in or near the tunnel while trying to reach Britain since late June.