In brief
At 19:27 on Thursday, a minibus carrying lorry drivers crashed into a stationary freight train on the loading platform in Coquelles, near Calais. The bus driver and one passenger were severely hurt, with all injuries deemed non‑life‑threatening and the victims evacuated by helicopter. French officials said freight and Eurostar traffic was only briefly disrupted and an investigation has been launched. The incident, the first of its kind on an Eurotunnel loading platform, involved all male passengers of various nationalities, and no British nationals were confirmed among the injured. Eurostar confirmed that the incident did not affect its passenger services.
A minibus hit a stationary freight train near the French entrance to the Channel Tunnel, injuring the bus driver and 18 passengers, French authorities said.
The vehicle, carrying lorry drivers about to board the Le Shuttle rail service, struck the train at the loading platform in Coquelles near Calais at 19:27 (18:27 BST) Thursday.
The bus driver and one passenger were severely injured; the victims were air‑lifted by helicopter. Officials said none of the injuries were life‑threatening.
Sub‑prefect Agathe Cury said freight and Eurostar traffic through the tunnel was only briefly halted while the injured were evacuated. An investigation has begun.
She noted two trains were on the platform: one being loaded by heavy goods vehicles, the other having previously been loaded and departing. For an as‑yet‑unknown reason the minibus collided with the departing train.
The bus remained upright, though the impact caused injuries to its occupants. The passengers were all men of different nationalities; it is unclear whether any British nationals were among the injured.
Cury described the incident as “the first time an incident of this type has occurred” on an Eurotunnel loading platform.
BBC’s Evan Davis, passing through the tunnel at the time, saw vehicles concentrating on a platform but noted traffic was not disrupted by the collision.
Photos from the French newspaper La Voix du Nord showed the damaged minibus beside the train amid emergency workers.
Eurostar reassured passengers that the incident was several kilometres away from the tunnel and would not affect its London‑to‑Europe services; all Eurostar trains will run as scheduled.
The Eurotunnel connects Folkestone in Kent with Coquelles on the French side under the English Channel, carrying Eurostar passenger trains, freight, and the Le Shuttle vehicle service.
