Firefighters have extinguished a blaze in the tunnel under the English Channel, but undersea train traffic remains suspended for a second day. Jacques Gounon, chief executive of Eurotunnel, said the undamaged southern passage of the Channel Tunnel, could reopen as soon as Friday evening.

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The tunnel was closed off after a fire broke out Thursday afternoon on a truck aboard a 30-car shuttle train traveling from England to France.

Fourteen people were injured in the fire, including six who suffered from smoke inhalation. It was among the most serious incidents in the history of the 50-kilometer (30-mile) tunnel, which opened to passengers in 1994.

The cause of the fire remained unclear. Bussereau said it „likely resembles something accidental,“ without elaborating. Jacques Gounon, chief executive of Eurotunnel, which operates the tunnel, said he had no reason to believe the fire could have been „criminal.“

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The Channel Tunnel is composed of three tunnels, each 40 meters (130 feet) beneath the sea bed. One tunnel carries shuttles, Eurostar passenger trains and freight traffic from France to England, while another runs in the opposite direction.

The pair are connected to a central service tunnel, used for maintenance and emergency access. The central tunnel is kept under a higher pressure than the train tunnels it flanks to keep out smoke in case of fire.

Gounon said on RTL radio that traffic could resume in the southern tunnel later Friday at half its usual capacity. He said the damaged part of the northern tunnel would remain closed „for several weeks.“

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Eurotunnel, which has been plagued by financial troubles and crushing debt, assured investors in a statement Friday that any financial impact of the accident „will be limited.“

Eurotunnel shares dropped 4 percent Thursday after the fire broke out and another 3.2 percent in early Paris trading Friday to Euro 9 ($12.54).

The train was carrying 32 people – mostly truck drivers accompanying their vehicles – in mid-afternoon when the fire erupted about 11 kilometers (seven miles) from the French side, officials said. All were evacuated safely.

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The fire broke out on a single truck on the train, with the truck drivers occupying a railcar ahead.

Six people were taken to a hospital after inhaling large quantities of smoke, officials said. Another eight were treated for light injuries. Some injured their hands by trying to break the train's windows to get out, Interior Minister Michele Alliot-Marie said Thursday.

Two of the injured „said they heard an explosion followed by flames,“ she told reporters after arriving in the area.

Eurotunnel and local officials could not confirm Friday whether there had been an explosion, or media reports that three trucks were ablaze.

Firefighters got the blaze under control within two hours, but weren't able to immediately put it out because temperatures that remained as high as 1,000 C (1,832 F) inside complicated their effort, Alliot-Marie said.

Eurostar trains carry some 26,000 people a day on average, according to latest traffic figures.

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