A refugee has been electrocuted while attempting to climb on the roof of a Eurostar train heading for the UK.

The unidentified man was killed at Paris’s Gare du Nord, the busiest railway station in Europe, after being hit by a bolt of electricity from overhead power lines.

Investigators said he was caught on CCTV climbing safety fences to reach international lines at around 5am local time (4am BST) on Tuesday, but was killed “within seconds” on the roof of a parked train bound for London.

A source told Le Parisien identification would be “tough”, as the “victim’s burns made them unrecognisable”.

Power to railway lines had to be cut while emergency services recovered the man’s body, causing disruption to Eurostar and national services in France.

“There was an incident this morning at the Gare du Nord that affected some of our services,” a spokesperson for Eurostar said.

“They are now getting back to normal.”

It is the second time an asylum seeker has been electrocuted at the Gare du Nord, after an Egyptian teenager attempting to reach Britain died in July 2015.

Calais refugee camp evacuation Show all 15 1 /15 Calais refugee camp evacuation Calais refugee camp evacuation Refugees run past a fire in the makeshift migrant camp known as 'the jungle' in Calais, October 2016 AP Calais refugee camp evacuation French authorities say the closure of the slum-like camp in Calais will last approximately a week in what they describe as a "humanitarian" operation, October 2016 AP Calais refugee camp evacuation A painted message saying 'Bye Jungle' on a tent in the camp in Calais, October 2016 Getty Calais refugee camp evacuation Refugees set rubbish bins alight as a protest in the makeshift camp 'the Jungle' in Calais, France, October 2016 EPA Calais refugee camp evacuation French riot police advance through tear gas and smoke from a fire to disperse refugees throwing stones and lighting fires at the Jungle migrant camp Getty Calais refugee camp evacuation French CRS riot police secure an area on the eve of the evacuation and transfer of refugees to reception centers in France Reuters Calais refugee camp evacuation Journalists run away from smoke during clashes near a makeshift refugee camp known as 'the jungle' in Calais AP Calais refugee camp evacuation French CRS riot police secure an area on the eve of the evacuation and transfer of refugees to reception centers in Franc Reuters Calais refugee camp evacuation Migrants queue for transportation by bus to reception centres across France, from the 'Jungle' refugee camp in Calais Getty Calais refugee camp evacuation Refugees line-up to register at a processing centre in the 'jungle' near Calais, northern France, as the mass exodus from the migrant camp begins PA wire Calais refugee camp evacuation Refugees with luggage walk past a graffiti on a wall as they leave the 'Jungle' migrant camp, as part of a major three-day operation planned to clear the camp in Calais Getty Calais refugee camp evacuation French far-right Front National (FN) party's member of parliament Marion Marechal-Le Pen (L) delivers a speech next to a banner reading "They arrive in Vaucluse, no migrants in our place" as she attends a rally against the hosting of refugees in La Tour d'Aigues Getty Images Calais refugee camp evacuation French police forces secure the area near the 'Jungle' refugee camp in Calais Getty Calais refugee camp evacuation Refugees leave messages on their tents in the Jungle migrant camp Getty Calais refugee camp evacuation Refugees carry their belongings and transfer to reception centers in France

An unknown number of migrants have also been suffocated, run over, hit by trains and drowned in desperate attempts to swim to England.

Disruption and deaths in the summer of 2015 caused Eurostar to deploy drones equipped with thermal imaging cameras to monitor the Channel Tunnel, while the British Government funded a multi-million pound wall separating Calais’s main motorway from refugee camps.

The “Jungle” was cleared by police last year, with the French government vowing to resettle evicted asylum seekers, but many have returned to the northern coast.

Thousands more are spread throughout the country after crossing to Europe by sea, including many sleeping rough in Paris, where police have been accused of violent crackdowns on homeless migrants.

The British Government has largely refused to resettle refugees who have already reached Europe, and dropped a commitment to house vulnerable children before freeing up 130 places following an “administrative error”.

Despite efforts to slow the flow of boats arriving from Turkey to Greek islands, the number of migrants crossing the Central Mediterranean to Italy is increasing.