way on board the vessel at the French port of Calais.
Witnesses said security staff were forced to turn a fire hose on the crowds as they attempted to overpower officials and machine-gun wielding police by climbing over fences and running up the main ramp into the ferry's vehicle hold.
The shocking incident took place yesterday afternoon, with P&O Ferries confirming that a 'huge intrusion' had occurred.
The news comes as the mayor of Calais threatened to blockade the port unless Britain pays out to compensate locals for the money spent controlling large and unsanitary immigrant camps in the area.
Natacha Bouchart says locals have been 'taken hostage' by about 1,500 migrants who hope to cross into the UK because they see it as 'an Eldorado' with a lax attitude towards immigration.
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Detained: Witnesses said the crowds attempted to overpower officials and machine-gun wielding police by climbing over fences and running up the main ramp into the ferry's vehicle hold
There were two attempts to storm the ferry yesterday - the first by 90 immigrants, who forced their way through a gate and then over a fence before the ferry's crew were able to raise the ramp in time.
A second attempt involving 150 individuals took place a short time later, with police able to block their path and detain them - again before they made it up the ferry's ramp.
The ferry was delayed for about 45 minutes while a search for escapees was carried out, before eventually setting sail for Britain.
P&O had a ferry at the quayside today, and a spokesman said the scenes were 'not unusual'
Speaking to the BBC, witness John Bailey said: 'The migrants were escorted back down the ramp by the police and led out of the port, shouting at some people in the vehicle queue.'
Mr Bailey added that on his arrival at the ferry port he was shocked to witness a stand-off between a group of immigrants and French police brandishing sub-machine guns.
'This was clearly no deterrent as they obviously ran past them into the port, which must have been a distance of about a mile,' he said.
News of the ferry storming comes as Ms Bouchart demanded Britain compensate Calais residents whose lives have been made a misery by immigrant camps in the area.
She blames Britain for having a lax immigration policy which encourages people to try and travel there in the hope they will be given a warmer welcome than in other parts of Europe.
Mass: The incident took place yesterday afternoon, with P&O Ferries confirming that a 'huge intrusion'
Sprint: A second attempt involving 150 individuals took place a short time later, with police able to block their path and detain them - again before they made it up the ferry's ramp (pictured in background)
As the closest French port to Britain, Calais has suffered the brunt of this attitude, Ms Bouchart argues.
Large unsanitary illegal immigrant camps have regularly sprung up in Calais and the surrounding area after the French government closed the Red Cross centre in nearby Sangatte.
Most of those living there are Eritreans, Sudanese and Afghans.
French police regularly break-up the camps, but they quickly spring up elsewhere - with the migrants saying they have nowhere else to go as it is too dangerous to return to their own countries.
Witness: Ferry passenger John Bailey said: 'The migrants were escorted back down the ramp by the police and led out of the port, shouting at some people in the vehicle queue'
Lorry drivers and car passengers look on as the immigrants attempt to force their way on to the ferry
Fed up: Calais mayor Natacha Bouchart said she would block the port if it was legal to do so
Ms Bouchart has criticized British calls for €10 million to be spent on increased security at the port of Calais, arguing that the UK must contribute more money itself to help cover the cost.
She has described herself as 'sick' of the numbers queuing up in northern France to try and sneak across the Channel,
'I could take the decision to block the port,' she said, following a meeting with Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve in Paris.
'I could bring pressure to bear. It would be illegal, but today I want to make a strong gesture towards the British.'
An estimated three million freight lorries, two million cars and 12 million passengers pass through Calais to Dover every year.
Official figures put the current number of migrants sleeping rough in a squat camp dubbed Jungle 2 and in disused buildings in the town at 1,300, but charity groups say the figure is more like 2000 and rising by roughly 20 people a day.
Transport companies are urging truckers to avoid boarding ferries at Calais following violent incidents between drivers faced with £1,500 fines if illegals are found in their trailers and people smugglers armed with knives, iron bars and in a case last week a pump action shotgun.
Last month, there were violent clashes between armed Eritrean and Sudanese gangs over territorial rights to spots where it is easy to jump on trucks and attempt to stowaway to Britain.
Sudanese refugees relax in Calais. A 'new Songatte' camp has been established in some woods just outside Calais by refugees who are waiting to get into the UK
Immigrants scramble for warm clothes and blankets in the cold of Calais
Official figures put the current number of migrants sleeping rough in the Jungle 2 camp (above) and in disused buildings around Calais at 1,300. The real number is closer to 2,000 and rising every day, experts say
The original Red Cross camp at Sangatte, which was home to 2,000 migrants, was shut down in 2002.
After the closure, Britain accepted hundreds of migrants in a deal with the French government but others were forced to move to a makeshift camp which became known as The Jungle.
It was razed in 2009 and, since then, the mostly Afghans and Iraqi Kurds have had to occupy squats in the town and camps near the ferry terminal. In recent months, the French government has adopted a tough stance, razing camps and throwing migrants on to the street.
But an increasing number of East African arrivals who have flocked to the Jungle 2 camp have caused tensions to rise again.
There are also thought to be thousands living in makeshift camps in the French countryside, with settlements having sprung up as far away as the Belgian border.
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