Eurostar cancels services amid snow chaos
Eurostar trains have been cancelled while the rail company investigates problems which left thousands of passengers trapped in the Channel Tunnel for hours.
Published: 3:23AM GMT 20 Dec 2009
Eurostar; Eurostar cancels services amid snow chaos
Travellers gather at London’s St Pancras station after Eurostar services were suspended Photo: AP
Wintry weather is thought to be to blame and there have been calls for the firm’s chief executive Richard Brown to resign and admit Eurostar was ‘‘not adequately prepared’’.
The closure of the tunnel left thousands more people stranded in Kent and France as they waited to board trains, while the closure of Calais port added to the chaos.
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Latest travel information
Roads leading to Dover and Folkestone became blocked with traffic and there were reports that some families with young children had been trapped in their cars for more than 15 hours.
A Eurostar spokesman said test trains will run today before any passengers are allowed to board as the company tries to prevent a repeat of yesterday’s chaotic scenes.
London St Pancras was packed as exhausted passengers arrived hours later than expected and hundreds more waited anxiously for news.
Nirj Deva, Conservative MEP for the South East of England, called on Mr Brown to resign as a result of ‘‘Eurostar’s astonishing incompetence’’.
All affected passengers will be offered a full refund, £150 compensation and a free return ticket but Mr Deva described the offer as ‘‘paltry’’ and said it showed ‘‘how out of touch the management of this company really is’’.
‘‘I therefore call on Richard Brown to admit that his company was not adequately prepared to deal with the situation today, and to do the decent thing and resign,’’ he added.
Some scheduled passengers stranded at St Pancras planned to stay the night in the hope of some good news this morning while others said they would try again tomorrow.
Angelique Stastny, 21, said: ‘‘I would fly but I have too much luggage so I will get a train to Paris eventually.’’
A series of special trains had been planned last night to transport some of those delayed by the chaos but only one - destined for Paris - left.
A Eurostar spokeswoman later said the other services were cancelled because of adverse weather conditions.
‘‘We have tried to run services but it’s not possible,’’ she said.
Another special service from Paris to London broke down after it came out of the Channel Tunnel, although passengers were eventually taken to London after long delays.
Mr Brown visited St Pancras yesterday as people arrived who had been trapped on four trains which broke down in the tunnel on Friday night.
He said he was ‘‘very, very sorry’’ about the inconvenience.
Many passengers said they were left without food, drink or power while in the tunnel.
Alison Sturgeon, from Ascot, left Disneyland Paris shortly after 7.30pm on Friday and arrived in London at 11am yesterday.
She said train staff had done a ‘‘dreadful job’’.
‘‘They were useless at giving us information. There was no communication at all,’’ she said.
There was also criticism of Kent Police after families were stuck on a gridlocked M20.
Roy Konarski said his Czech sister-in-law Rony Kovora was stuck near junction 12 for more than 16 hours yesterday with her daughters Amelie, four, and Phoebe, three.
‘‘It makes you embarrassed to be English,’’ he said.
''I think it’s disgusting that nothing’s been done.
‘‘I phoned Kent Police and they said they were doing everything they can.’’
A spokesman for Kent Police said officers were doing their best to help those caught up in the disruption.
Freight traffic is being turned around in an effort to allow the backlog of tourist traffic to pass through the county, he added.
Chief Superintendent Matthew Nix said the welfare of motorists was his ‘‘primary concern’’.
Snow and ice also caused continued disruption to flights yesterday and wintry weather is expected to cause more delays and cancellations today.
Michael Dukes, forecast manager for MeteoGroup UK, the weather arm of the Press Association, said overnight temperatures between -2C (28F) and -7C (19F) were expected to cause widespread problems with ice and snow.
He said northern England and Wales are expected to be worst hit, but snowfalls could also reach 10cms in East Anglia.
