Hundreds of enraged migrants caused chaos in Calais as they tried to board ferries to the UK in a violent rampage.

Police had to use tear gas on the 300-strong mob yesterday as they threw stones and attempted to board lorries.

French authorities were forced to seal off the port as police erected barriers to contain the ferocious crowd which was shouting 'f*** the UK'.

Hundreds of migrants closed the port of Calais in a violent rampage as they tried to board ferries to the UK

Witnesses said that migrants blocked traffic on the way to the port so they could break into lorries in a desperate bid to reach Britain

People caught up in the disturbance said cars were being 'stoned' by migrants as they sat in traffic unable to move

Witnesses said that migrants blocked traffic on the way to the port so they could break into lorries in a desperate bid to reach Britain.

And people turned to social media to express their shock at the scenes. One England football fan caught up in the disturbance said cars were being 'stoned' by migrants as they sat in traffic unable to move.

Holidaymaker Ed Lowman shared a pictured of a lorry saying that he saw 'eight illegal immigrants' break into it and another twitter user said migrants were 'smashing cars up with rocks.'

Another complained about the snaking queues that went on for miles: 'UK Border control Calais-side has stopped, we are all sat here waiting for cars to start flowing through. No toilets or water.'

The disturbance started at 3pm yesterday as gangs of migrants from the nearby Jungle camp attacked the road between the camp and the port, according to local paper La Void du Nord.

The road finally reopened at 7pm but was littered with debris after the chaos. Several police officers were injured in the clashes and two militants from the No Borders anarchist group were reportedly arrested.

The disturbance started at 3pm yesterday as gangs of migrants from the nearby Jungle camp attacked the road between the camp and the port, according to local paper La Void du Nord

French authorities were forced to seal off the port as police erected barriers to contain the ferocious crowd who were shouting 'f*** the UK'

Police had to use tear gas on the 300-strong mob yesterday as they threw stones and attempted to board lorries

The road finally reopened at 7pm but was littered with debris after the chaos. Several police officers were injured in the clashes

Calais police spokesman told TV channel France 3: 'Police personnel have been deployed in numbers and had to use tear gas to evict migrants from the roadway'

UKIP's defence spokesman Mike Hookem immediately linked immigration to Britain's membership of the EU. Pictured: A damaged fence

Calais police said: 'A group of around 300 migrants are involved in the disturbances.

'They are placing objects in the road and trying to get on trucks.'

A Calais police spokesman told TV channel France 3: 'Police personnel have been deployed in numbers and had to use tear gas to evict migrants from the roadway. At the same time controls have been strengthened all across the port of Calais.'

It is thought that the migrants, who normally try to sneak on to lorries by night, planned their attack to coincide with increased traffic due to the European Championships.

UKIP's defence spokesman Mike Hookem immediately linked immigration to Britain's membership of the EU.

He told the Express: 'Economic migrants congregating in Calais know that if Britain votes to leave the EU we can take control of our borders. That is why they are so desperate to get to the UK should we vote to save our country on Thursday.'

Holidaymakers also reported severe delays for P&O Ferries yesterday. The company tweeted: 'We understand there are delays on the motorway to Calais Port rest assured we will check you onto the next available ferry at no extra cost.'

A P&O spokesman told MailOnline that ferries were delayed for up to 30 minutes over the course of yesterday afternoon but today they are back on schedule.

Police swiftly arrived at the scene where they set up barriers and released tear gas

One motorist driving past the disturbance took a video on his way through showing the police operation