Eurostar has announced the cancellation of all its train services to and from London St Pancras on Saturday, attributing it to tunnel flooding, leading to significant travel disruptions over the New Year period. Despite initial hopes to resume later services, all 41 scheduled trains for the day have been called off. This has also impacted Southeastern’s high-speed services to Ebbsfleet, leading to their cancellation for the day.
The situation has caused considerable inconvenience for travelers, especially those planning for New Year’s Eve, as they now face major travel disruptions.
Eurostar, which operates routes linking London with Paris, Brussels, and Amsterdam, has assured affected passengers of full refunds or ticket exchanges.
The tunnel flooding, a crucial link between the UK and Continental Europe, has been termed “unprecedented” by track operator HS1. Despite overnight efforts by engineers and ongoing water removal, the situation remains unresolved.
Additionally, Southeastern’s services from St Pancras, Stratford International, and Ebbsfleet International are also disrupted.
This marks Eurostar’s second significant disruption recently, following a “last-minute strike” by French workers just before Christmas.
Furthermore, Thameslink services in London and Southeast England are experiencing disruptions due to staff shortages, similar to Northern Rail in northern England.
In Wales, extreme weather has forced the closure of the line between Llandudno Junction and Blaenau Ffestiniog, and services between Swansea and Shrewsbury have been canceled due to flooding.
