“Two trains were on either side of the platform. One was being loaded by heavy goods vehicles ahead of a cross-Channel journey, and another train that had previously been loaded was departing,” Cury said.
“For a reason that currently remains unknown, the minibus collided with the departing train.
“The bus did not overturn, it is still upright – but the shock and the collision caused injuries to the people involved.”
The incident involved a minibus transporting workers who were about to board Le Shuttle. All were men of different nationalities, she added.
It is not clear whether any British nationals are among the injured.
Cury said it was “the first time an incident of this type has occurred” on an Eurotunnel loading platform.
The BBC’s Evan Davis, who was travelling through the Eurotunnel to Calais at the time of the incident, witnessed blue light vehicles “concentrated on one of the platforms” as he entered France.
“There were plenty of cars queueing up at check-in when I drove past just now, and I saw some cars going through check-in, so despite the collision they weren’t being held,” he said from the scene.
Photos published by local French newspaper La Voix du Nord, external showed a small bus with damage to its front and side standing alongside a train, among a crowd of emergency workers.
Eurostar has released an update saying: “An incident occurred several kilometers away from the Channel Tunnel.
“This incident does not involved or impact Eurostar trains running from and to London. All of Eurostar trains will run as expected.”
