It comes after a judge upheld a decision to demolish the southern part of the camp known as “the jungle”.
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Demolition crews have been poised to start what officials say will be a better solution for migrants trapped in Calais with borders all but sealed by increasing security.
Currently, the camp houses refugees who fled war-torn countries including Afghanistan, Syria and Iraq.
One of the humanitarian groups that filed the last-minute legal appeal, L’auberge des Migrants, said there are only 1,156 places available throughout France for the 3,455 people who live in the southern section set to be cleared. Truckers have grown exasperated or fearful of increasingly bold tactics by migrants trying to sneak rides across the English Channel.
Dr Philip McCarthy, CEO of CSAN said: “no one wants to see the camp continue, however we need more time to assess the welfare of vulnerable unaccompanied minors and put in place proper arrangements to prioritise their health and social needs”.
But according to Calais Migrant Solidarity, a charity working in the Calais camp, “there are still more than 5,000 undocumented people”.
Critics of the efforts to dismantle the camp, even in a slow process over many weeks, say it will do little other than disperse people to different parts of the northern French coast.
But it is hard to dissuade tired travelers who come to Calais driven by a dream – circulated among migrants, peddled by smugglers. Facing criticism of the eviction order, Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve softened the ultimatum this week, saying the evacuation would be “progressive”.
On Friday, the International Organization for Migration said that more than 120,000 migrants arrived in Greece and Italy in 2016.
State authorities say up to 1,000 people will be affected by the plans to relocate them from the slum site to heated containers nearby or to centres around France. The camp’s impromptu main street, featuring a church, school, shack-built shops and cafes as well as a business offering hot showers and a makeshift Turkish bath, remained bustling.
Authorities view the razing of much of the camp as a turning point for Calais, but that’s a far from certain outcome. “It’s as if the government would like to make people disappear before the spring because they are afraid of new arrivals”.
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The migrants arrived mainly on buses from the French city of Dunkirk.
