Story highlights Major link between continent and British Isles closed for several hours

Eurotunnel spokesman says service to resume soon

London (CNN) The tunnel that runs under the English Channel between England and France was closed Tuesday afternoon, cutting off a key link between the European continent and the British Isles.

All traffic was suspended starting at 3 p.m. local time (9 a.m. ET), because protesters broke into the tunnel entry site in France and set tires on fire, a Eurotunnel press officer told CNN. He declined to give his name.

A Eurostar train exits the Channel Tunnel in 2006.

Eurotunnel -- Groupe Eurotunnel SE -- manages the channel tunnel, sometimes referred to as the Chunnel, earning money from the Eurostar passenger train service and trains owned by other companies that use the passageway.

Would-be passengers trying to contact Eurotunnel got a recorded message saying, "Our passenger service is temporarily suspended."

The Eurostar train service shut down operations completely. "We have been advised by Eurotunnel that we will be unable to run any services for the rest of the day. Normal services will resume tomorrow," said a statement on the Eurostar website

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