Advertisement

Full train service planned for tomorrow following yesterday's fire in the Channel Tunnel

Eurostar says it plans a full service tomorrow after delays and cancellations struck for a second...
Newstalk
Newstalk

14.52 18 Jan 2015


Share this article


Full train service planned for...

Full train service planned for tomorrow following yesterday's fire in the Channel Tunnel

Newstalk
Newstalk

14.52 18 Jan 2015


Share this article


Eurostar says it plans a full service tomorrow after delays and cancellations struck for a second successive day.

11 Eurostar services were cancelled today because of "power supply problems" - meaning more headaches for stranded passengers.

Services between London, Paris and Brussels have been hit by continuing delays after a lorry fire led to the closure of the Channel Tunnel on Saturday.

Advertisement

Passengers have complained of long waits to re-book seats.

Eurostar said six trains that were due to leave from London between 2pm and just after 8pm, along with five leaving from Paris and Brussels, were cancelled today.

The company said that one of the two tunnels used by its trains will remain closed all day.

"In addition, Eurotunnel experienced new power supply problems this morning which meant that both tunnels were again closed for two hours," it said in a statement.

"This closure was a separate incident, unrelated to the problems experienced yesterday."

Lorry fire

Eurostar and the Eurotunnel Le Shuttle car service were stopped on Saturday after the fire on the French side of the railway's south tunnel.

The incident led to long queues at St Pancras station in London as services were cancelled for most of the day.

Queues formed again at the station this morning, where Eurostar services resumed after 8am.

There were similar scenes in Paris and Brussels.

Eurostar had earlier said it would run a full service today, but only "for passengers who have an existing reservation for this date".

People were warned that trains could be delayed by between 30 minutes and an hour.

Eurostar advised people whose trains were cancelled on Saturday not to arrive at stations unless they had already been re-booked.

People booked on the services cancelled on Sunday have been asked to "postpone their travel and rebook for an alternative date".

Eurotunnel services resumed at 2.45am UK time.

Eurotunnel spokesman John O'Keefe said a "smouldering load" was found in the trailer of the lorry.

The alarm was triggered after CO2 detectors were activated in one tunnel, Eurotunnel said. No one was injured.

In March, hundreds of Eurostar passengers were delayed after a lightning strike triggered a fire in a building close to the entrance to the tunnel in Kent.

Although there was no damage to the track, four trains in and out of England were affected.

Three eventually reached their destination but the fourth, which had been heading to Paris, was forced to turn back to London.

Originally posted at 14.49


Share this article


Read more about

News

Most Popular