Eurotunnel To Resume Services After Lorry Fire

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Eurotunnel services are expected to partially resume in the coming hours after a lorry fire forced the closure of the Channel Tunnel.

Eurotunnel's 'Le Shuttle' car service will gradually begin operation as soon as French firefighters give the all-clear, a company spokesman said.

However Eurostar, which runs passenger services linking St Pancras in London with Paris and Brussels, said trains won't resume until Sunday.

Thousands of passengers were left stranded when dozens of services were cancelled on both sides of the Channel after smoke was detected on the French side of the tunnel.

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Gallery: Travel Chaos In London And Paris

This is the scene at St Pancras International station in London as Eurostar services are cancelled in both directions

The company said trains would not be running on Saturday

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Large queues of passengers have formed - but they are being told they will be unable to travel

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It is a similar scene at Gare du Nord station in Paris - this board shows all services have been cancelled

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Passengers are having to make alternative arrangements

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Eurotunnel spokesman John O'Keefe said a "smouldering load" was found in the trailer of the lorry which had been travelling through the north tunnel, but said there was "no major fire".

No injuries were reported.

Mr O'Keefe said Eurotunnel services will travel through the south tunnel this evening, while firefighters continue to assess damage to the north tunnel.

"It doesn't look like anything significant at this stage," he said.

The company tweeted: "We expect to run a reduced timetable tomorrow. Sales are stopped to ensure priority for customers already booked."

Eurostar, meanwhile, said it would run a "near normal" service on Sunday, but only "for passengers who have an existing reservation for this date."

It advised those whose trains had been cancelled not to go to stations unless they had already been re-booked.

"If you were on a cancelled train today and need to travel urgently tomorrow, please call our contact centre on 03432 186 186 after 8am GMT tomorrow and we will try to re-book you on a service departing after 12pm GMT," it said.

Those who are travelling were warned to expect delays of between 30 to 60 minutes.

"Services are expected to run tomorrow Sunday, with delays - stations will be *very* busy so if you can postpone then that is advisable," it tweeted.

Earlier Eurotunnel tweeted that the alarm was triggered after CO2 detectors were activated in one tunnel.

A Kent Police spokesman said: "A lorry fire has led to the closure of both bores of the Channel Tunnel.

"The fire was at the French end of the tunnel and is being dealt with by the French authorities. There are no reported injuries.

"However, rail passengers are advised to expect significant delays whilst the vehicle is being recovered and fumes are cleared from the tunnels."

In March, hundreds of Eurostar passengers were delayed after a lightning strike triggered a fire in a building close to the entrance to the tunnel in Kent.

Although there was no damage to the track, four trains in and out of England were affected.

Three eventually reached their destination but the fourth, which had been heading to Paris, was forced to turn back to London.

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