Eurostar cancels all trains after tunnel floods under River Thames

Thousands of passengers face severe disruption to their New Year’s Eve plans after Eurostar cancelled all of Saturday’s trains because of “unprecedented” flooding in its Thames Tunnel.

Services came to a standstill to and from London St Pancras after a leak near Ebbsfleet International Station in Kent, with more than 30,000 travellers stranded or forced to use alternative routes amid chaotic scenes at stations.

Eurostar cancelled a total of 41 trains running between London and European capitals, including Paris, Amsterdam and Brussels. Southeastern trains were also cancelled between St Pancras, Faversham and Ashford International.

It was announced on Saturday that all of its services would resume on Sunday and that the “unprecedented” flooding had been brought under control meaning “at least one tunnel can now be used”.

However, Eurostar warned customers to expect further delays and busy stations.

The flooding, first discovered in the tunnel on Friday night, was caused by a “fire-control system”, Thames Water said. A video taken inside the tunnel shows water gushing onto the tracks from a pipe attached to the wall.

Officials reportedly decided at 4am on Saturday to prevent trains from running through it.

Thameslink also warned passengers to expect delays on its services because of a lack of staff, with cancellations expected tomorrow, along with a reduced service on Northern Rail, which covers the north of England, due to staff shortages.

Chiltern Railways has said there is a “high risk” of disruption as it cancelled one of just four trains running out of London after midnight on New Year’s Eve.

The chaos came after rail chiefs had warned people to travel on Friday if they wanted to ensure they arrived at their intended destination in good times for News Year’s Eve parties on Sunday.

West Midlands Railway and London Northwestern Railway said passengers would be left with “very limited alternative options” once final services, predicted to be “significantly oversubscribed”, have departed.

The operators warned of overcrowding and queues at London Euston and Birmingham New Street

It is the second time in 10 days there has been major disruption to Eurostar services with a “last-minute strike” by French workers halting trains before Christmas.

Eurostar apologized to customers after cancelling all its Saturday services.

“Eurostar is extremely sorry for the unforeseen issues affecting customers today but safety remains our number-one priority. We understand this is a vital time to get home at the end of the festive season and ahead of New Year and we are supporting customers in stations.”

A spokesman for HS1, which has responsibility for infrastructure of the route, also apologized. “We are doing everything possible to restore services but this is proving challenging and will take time,” he said.