Hundreds of Eurostar passengers were left stranded in the Channel Tunnel for hours, causing a major disruption to their travel plans.
French media reported that around 800 passengers were stuck in the tunnel for three hours before being evacuated to Calais.
The incident happened on one of the busiest travel days of the year, as people began travelling widely after the festive period.
The train was scheduled to arrive at Paris Gare du Nord at approximately 9:20am local time, but it broke down in the Channel Tunnel during the journey.
Freelance Journalist Gaby Koppel shared her experience on Twitter, stating: “I’m on the first @EurostarUK train out of London heading for Paris. We’ve been stationary in the tunnel for 2hrs now, and have been told that we’ll be going again in 15 minutes.”
(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
In a statement posted on social media, Eurostar confirmed that the train had experienced a “technical issue.”
It added: “Service update: Train 9080 had a technical issue this morning”, reports the Mirror.
“This train is now running at reduced speed to Calais where passengers will be transferred to another Eurostar train to continue their journey to Paris. Thank you for your understanding and our apologies for the delay.”
Alicia Peters, an operations supervisor who was travelling with her daughter to Disneyland Paris, told The Independent: “Sitting for 2.5 hours on a stationary train with my eight-year-old daughter was very stressful.”
(Image: Getty Images)
Amidst the chaos, a social media user identified as Chip Cain recounted their ordeal on the same train: “Stuck in Chunnel on @eurostar for more than an hour. No air, no updates.”
The disgruntled traveller added, “Wow, THANKS for the response. Six-hour delay, new train doesn’t even have enough seats for everyone.”
They further added: “I didn’t see anything other than a bottle of water offered by security personell.”
For more incredible stories from the Daily Star, make sure you sign up to one of our newsletters