PARIS (AP) — Eurostar, the operator of high-speed train services between London and Paris under the English Channel, said yesterday that first-quarter sales fell 5.8 percent because of the partial closure of the tunnel and a slump in business travel.

Part of the tunnel was closed after a fire broke out on September 11 aboard one of the trains that whiz back and forth through the 30-mile tunnel between Britain and France. It fully reopened to traffic only on February 23, Eurostar said.

Despite the economic crisis and the tunnel problems, Eurostar said leisure travel increased by 2.2 percent over the period as French and Belgian tourists were attracted to Britain by the cheap pound, Eurostar said.

In contrast, business travel fell by close to 20 percent.

Eurostar said first-quarter revenue fell to £168.1 million ($251.27 million) from £178.5 million in 2008.

Eurostar carried 1.92 million travellers in the period, a drop of 11.5 percent from a year ago.