French ferry workers have taken over two ships and partied away to protest the loss of their jobs.
With MyFerryLink due to transfer the ferries to Danish operator DFDS, the majority of the 600 French workers were due join the dole queue.
An unknown number of them took to occupying two ferries, the Rodin and the Berlioz, in Calais.
It has been reported that they have since managed to polish off the contents of the bars, daubed graffiti inside and out, opened the emergency slides, and other acts of vandalism.
Robin Wilkins, managing director of defunct MyFerryLink, said: "I'm aware there's some damage to the vessels.
"The evacuation slides have been deployed and I believe there may be some damage to the interior of the ship but I have no idea what it is."
The previous owners, Eurotunnel, eventually gave up the fight against competition authorities which accused it of having too large a share of the cross-Channel market. Eurotunnel decided to close MyFerryLink.
DFDS was supposed to take over on 2 July but this has now been delayed. The company had offered work to 202 of the 600 employees.
Mr Wilkins added: "It would have been sensible to realise that putting large numbers of jobs at risk in Calais was going to cause a volatile situation. It is an area with high unemployment.
"Putting 600 jobs at risk without any plan about how the situation will be addressed is asking for trouble.
"We regret any damage done to the vessels and the inconvenience to customers."
Eurotunnel spokesman John Keefe said: "No one knows the state of the ships at the moment. This is something the authorities have to deal with. It's a police matter.
"These ships have been occupied illegally but the police haven't moved the workers on yet, which is strange considering it's an illegal strike and occupation.
"I have heard plenty of rumours about damage on the ships but there is no proof one way or the other."
