- Title: FRANCE: FIRST CHANNEL TUNNEL LINK BREAKTHROUGH
- Date: 27th April 1989
- Summary: COQUELLES, CALAIS, FRANCE (APRIL 27, 1989) (REUTERS - JEAN-JAQUES -FERON) GV SITE FOR FRENCH TERMINAL WITH CARDBOARD CUT OUTS OF FRENCH KIN FRANCOIS I AND ENGLISH KING HENRY VIII AT ENTRANCE TO TUNNEL 0.05 GV ROCK FACE COLLAPSING AS CROWD WATCHES 0.14 SV CAMERAMEN 0.17 GV DRILLING MACHINE EMERGING THROUGH ROCK AS PEOPLE APPLAUD 0.29 CU JAPANESE WORKER WITH VIDEOCAMERA 0.33 GV DRILLING MACHINE CREW MEMBER CLAMBERING OUT 0.37 GV CROWD WATCHING 0.42 GV MACHINE CREW STANDING NEAR DRILL AND WAVING 0.47 SCU ENGLISH CREW MEMBERS TONY BRAY AND SON WILLIAM 0.56 GV RURAL LAND SCARRED BY CONSTRUCTION WORK (2 SHOTS) 1.03 SV DANCERS IN REGIONAL COSTUME 1.13 Initialsmdn Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 12th May 1989 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: France, France
- Country: France
- Topics: Business,Industry,Transport
- Reuters ID: LVACRRVE39T7XJJTHP1QJ8G1867H
- Story Text: The first section of the Channel Tunnel surfaced near the site of the French terminal at Coquelles, near Calais on Thursday. A giant tunnelling machine, codenamed TBM-T4 but nicknamed "Virginie", broke through the rock completing the 3.2 kilometre service tunnel link from the Sangatte shaft on the French coast.
An invited audience of several hundred people including French Minister of Transport, Michel Delebarre, watched the breakthrough by T-4 and its crew of 20 men. The drilling on the land service tunnel began in July 1988 and involved work in extremely poor geological conditions.
Nonetheless, the 4.8 metre-diameter drill made record progress, including boring 886 metres of tunnel in just one month. Now the machine, produced by Japanese manufacturers Mitsubishi and Marubeni and worth more than ten million US dollars, will be sold or scrapped. Ten other machines, including some up to 7.6 metres in diameter, will continue working on the other channel links. The service tunnel - which will provide maintenance access and emergency escape facilities - is due to be completed by October 1990. The two larger tunnels, which will carry the shuttle trains, are scheduled for completion in 1991 and operational use by June 1993.
Overall, the Channel Tunnel is expected to cost more than nine billion dollars. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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