Eurostar trains to resume after day of travel chaos as ‘exceptional’ WW2 bomb defused
Eurostar is set to resume its service tomorrow between Britain and France following the discovery of an unexploded bomb.
The explosive device was around 2.5 km from Gare du Nord, one of the busiest train stations in the French capital.
French transport authorities have confirmed rail traffic will start to return to normal from 5pm GMT. However, Eurostar services have been cancelled.
About 220 million passengers pass through the Gare du Nord, Europe’s busiest train station, each year, travelling to and from destinations in northern France, and London, Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany.
Eurostar’s Chief Safety and Stations Officer Simon Lejeune told the BBC the situation is “complex” adding they thought it was the “better option” to cancel all 32 services between London and Paris today.
Lejeune apologised to commuters for the travel disruption today and the issues customers have faced accessing the Eurostar app.
Clemence Fandard, an interface designer in Paris, said her 6.20 am train to Amsterdam was initially delayed for 45 minutes before being cancelled.
“I had heard reports of these things happening from time to time,” Fandard said, adding: “We were unlucky!”
French Transport Minister, Philippe Tabarot, says the discovery of an unexploded WW2 bomb of this size is “really quite exceptional.”
He told reporters: “Finding bombs around the railway network is something that happens. But in proportion, like the one today with a bomb of this size, it’s really quite exceptional.”
A 500 metre security perimeter has been established around the unexploded bomb.
Approximately 200 people had to be evacuated this morning as their houses led directly into the impacted area.
One traveller, Kasman Ibrahimi, said he had planned to catch a train to Cologne in Germany from Gare du Nord but would now look for an alternative route.
Another tourist, Karen, told the BBC: “Me and my husband travelled down last night,” she tells the BBC. “We arrived and were told at about 07:00 that trains were cancelled – and no guarantee when they would restart.
“As we were effectively stranded, we’ve decided to transfer our ticket and travel to Lille. So, lunch in Lille, and will then work out how to get to Paris from there.”