Eurostar trains stuck in tunnel due to cold weather (19 December 2009)

[whole diary]

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Four Eurostar trains have broken down in the Channel Tunnel due to cold weather, as more snow is expected to cause disruption in parts of Britain.

The temperature difference between the chilly open air and warm tunnel under the English Channel caused the trains to break down, Eurostar said. It said a rescue locomotive was trying to get them out.

At least three of the trains were from Paris to London. Two further trains travelling from Brussels and Paris heading for the tunnel were turned back.

[Brusselier]

I'm stuck here in Brussels and can say that the information flow is appalling. The front line staff are not being told anything at all (by their own admission) and are just telling people to contact customer services (Belgian one is closed, British one at Ashford is overwhelmed). People are getting information phoned through from the UK^▸ (United Kingdom) by people watching the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page)!

Those that were brought back to Brussels last night were put on a train which left just after 14h00, but once it went one of the staff here said that they weren't sure they would make it this time, but they were going to see! quelle service!

I was supposed to be on the 1359 train to St Pancras, which was cancelled along with the others. I was also supposed to be helping someone move from Brussels to Chippenham (via Paddington) before going onto Exeter from there. Had booked Advance tickets (rather than CIV^▸ (International Convention for the transportation of Passengers) tickets) on FGW^▸ (First Great Western) allowing 90 minutes leeway in London! alas, not enough!

Brusselier (off to carrefour to buy a Turkey...)

[Chris from Nailsea]

Sorry to hear about that, Brusselier! 

It does all seem to have been rather traumatic - from the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Passengers trapped on Eurostar trains relive ordeal

Passengers trapped on board broken-down Eurostar trains for up to 16 hours have been talking about their ordeals.

More than 2,000 people were trapped inside the Channel Tunnel for hours after five trains suffered electrical failure due to freezing conditions.

One commuter called the experience a "complete nightmare".

Eurostar restarted a limited service for stranded passengers but later cancelled three of the four trains that were due to leave London. It said the cancellations were made due to ongoing concerns with the weather.

Passenger Meena Wells said there were angry scenes when these were announced. She said: "People were shouting, screaming and crying. They are very upset and actually refusing to leave the platform."

Meanwhile, the police have urged motorists to stay away from major routes around Dover and Folkestone unless their journey is essential.

Continued delays are expected on the M20 and other routes because of the tunnel problems and severe weather preventing ferries disembarking at Calais.

During the Eurostar delays some passengers were stuck on a train for up to seven hours in sidings in Folkestone.
 
Lucy Morris was nearly at St Pancras at midday on Saturday. Her 2hr 20min journey from Paris has taken more than 16 hours. She was stuck in the Channel Tunnel for about five hours and after her train was towed out, she was transferred on to another train, which was stuck in the sidings. The 20-year-old student from London, who had been on a shopping trip, said: "There has been no proper organisation. There is water but people are hungry. Staff are pleasant but have no idea. I'm exhausted and also angry at being treated so badly."

The company plans to offer passengers a full refund for tickets , another free journey with them and ^150 compensation.

Responding to criticism over the handling of the situation, Eurostar's chief executive, Richard Brown, said: "We did get them all safely out of the tunnel. Safety is our absolute priority as you would expect. What was unprecedented was the weather conditions particularly in northern France with heavy snowfall and very, very cold temperatures outside of the tunnel."
 
Mr Brown said the conditions caused condensation which brought about electrical problems in the tunnel. He added: "It is utterly unprecedented to have five trains failing in the tunnel at the same time. We will obviously be looking very closely at this to make sure that is does not happen again."

Transport Minister Chris Mole backed plans for an investigation into the causes of the delays. He said it was clear that passengers had a distressing experience.

Passengers on two of the trains were taken out via service tunnels to car trains, while the passengers on the other three trains remained on board.

Eurostar said there would be a limited service on Sunday and asked passengers whose journeys were not essential to consider cancelling their trips. It hopes to have a full service by Monday.

The problems with the Eurostar services had a knock-on effect for car passengers hoping to use the tunnel.

James Brownell and his friends had a 12-hour wait at Folkestone. The 27-year-old from Essex said they were left in their car in "sub zero temperatures" but they luckily had duvets and blankets to keep them warm.

John Keefe from Eurotunnel, the operator of the Channel Tunnel, said motorists should not travel unless they have a confirmed booking. He said those who do travel should expect disruption because of the appalling weather conditions in France.

Ch Supt Matthew Nix, of Kent Police, said: "The welfare of motorists, some of who have remained in their cars for many hours, is our primary concern."

Stranded motorists will get hot drinks, snacks and blankets to help them cope.

Staff at the Channel Tunnel and the Port of Dover are working hard to clear the backlog, police added.

The train breakdowns coincided with strike action by Eurostar drivers in a 48-hour dispute over pay which began on Friday. Around 70 members of the drivers' union Aslef are taking part in the industrial action.

[caliwag]

So what did happen to the 37s that were meant to act as Thunderbirds? Poor show all round. Surely the idea is to plan for the worst case! Trains in Northern Scotland would carry hampers of pork pies, mars bars and drinks...Jeez it cannot be that difficult or is it that such luxuries erode profits?...amateurs.

[John R]

Sold off, IIRC^▸ (if I recall/remember/read correctly). Not sure whether they were ever used in anger.

Some interesting looking locomotives appeared to be hauling a Eurostar through Kent today judging by pictures on the news. Though this evening more reports of a Eurostar pulling a failed set stalling due to the gradient between Ebbsfleet and Stratford.

Eurostar do seem to have big problems with contingency planning. A couple of years ago the lines between Ashford and Waterloo were blocked and everything went completely to pot, although they could have usefully turned everything around at Ashford (they didn't  - just cancelled everything).  They don't seem to realise that the failure to plan for this sort of event costs them hugely in terms of negative publicity, when one of their selling points is the reliability compared with air.

 

[Chris from Nailsea]

Indeed, the problems continue, apparently.  From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Eurostar train becomes stranded on way from Paris

A special Eurostar service from Paris has become stuck near Ebbsfleet in Kent, after trains were left stranded in the Channel Tunnel on Saturday.

Passengers say there is no heating and lighting, and food has run out.

Earlier, five trains were stuck in the tunnel trapping more than 2,000 people for up to 16 hours.

Eurostar said special trains were being laid on on Saturday night to transport "vulnerable passengers" between London and Paris and Brussels.

Passengers on board the train in Kent say staff are unable to tell them when they will arrive at St Pancras.

The trains that became stuck in the tunnel suffered electrical failure due to freezing conditions.

Eurostar ran a limited service but later cancelled three of the four trains due to leave London on Saturday and scrapped all services for Sunday.

It said the cancellations were made due to ongoing concerns with the weather.

Some test trains will run on Sunday but will not carry passengers.

A Eurostar spokesman said: "When you have severe cold and snow even if you are operating within speed restrictions, which we were yesterday afternoon and evening, you do get a build-up of snow under and around the train and when you enter the tunnel you get water and at the end of the day these are electric trains."

Meanwhile, police have urged motorists to stay away from major routes around Dover and Folkestone unless their journey is essential.

Continued delays are expected on the M20 and other routes because of the tunnel problems and severe weather preventing ferries disembarking at Calais.

[Electric train]

Friend of mine spent yesterday afternoon waiting at St P for her mum and sister who was coming over from France for my friends birthday party, the train should have arrived at about 16:30, she could not get any sense out of the Eurotrain staff a St P all they said was visit the website.  She got a phone call from her mum to say the train was stranded and would make their own way to the party.

At 22.00 a call from her mum to say there was no lighting, heating, no water or food and they had just been advised they might have to spend the night on the train.   A call about 40 mins later said they were on the move being toed, 30 min later a call to say the rescue train had failed as well, a call a little latter to say they were at a station waiting for a train to take them to St P.  As I left the party (it was snowing) about 00:30 she had a call to say they were at St P in a taxi queue Eurostar were picking up the cost.

My friend was to say the least was upset and is angry that her mum and sister missed her birthday party, they finally arrived at there hotel at 02:15

Eurostar you have a lot of explaining to do and even more damage limitation to do

[eightf48544]

As John R says Eurostar does seem to have a big problem with contigency planning. You would have thought after teh two firres and the fiasco he mentioned where they could still have used conventional lines.
that the penny would have dropped.


One big problem is that Eurostars are the most complex trains in teh world with 8 (1 removed 1000V DC^▸ (Direct Current)) operating modes. 3 of which are fro  25KV lines with TVM^▸ (Ticket Vending Machine) signalling. One for UK^▸ (United Kingdom) one For France (1 hour on clock difference) and one for the tunnel higher with a higher pan height.

Two points made by Christian Wolmar on breakfast TV this am were that of course the running of the tunnel is down to Eurotunnel and not Eurostar and it was probaly because of secuirty considerations that sensible decsions couldn't be made in case of potential terrorist attacks or illegal immigrants storming the tunnel. It is presumably because of potential  illegal immigrants is why they couldn't detrain people at Ashford and use the Javelins or conventianal services to London. Thus pasengers had to stay locked in the train. But I thought these UK  immigration was in Paris/Lille and Brussels these days.

However, why it was not possible to bring food and water portable toilets through the service tunnel I don't know.

[Worcester_Passenger]

There's another discussion on this subject at http://groups.google.co.uk/group/uk.railway/browse_thread/thread/e94d41507f01894e/b517c5a12de13000.

That includes the reference to this being a problem that's happened before, at http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2003/feb/01/transport.world. In which case, why hasn't the problem been sorted out?

Meanwhile, there's some photos at http://www.rtranmer.fotopic.net/c1793764.html of two Eurotunnel rescue diesels at St Pancras. Which makes you wonder how they rescued the other trains, and what speed these locos can manage!

[devon_metro]

Meanwhile, there's some photos at http://www.rtranmer.fotopic.net/c1793764.html of two Eurotunnel rescue diesels at St Pancras. Which makes you wonder how they rescued the other trains, and what speed these locos can manage!

5mph through the tunnel, then 60mph on "HS1^▸ (High Speed line 1 - St Pancras to Channel Tunnel)"

The obvious solution, in my opinion, would have been to check everybody out at Ashford Int and then transfer them onto a domestic service to SPX.

[Worcester_Passenger]

The obvious solution, in my opinion, would have been to check everybody out at Ashford Int and then transfer them onto a domestic service to SPX.

Sounds a much more sensible plan.

Christian Wolmar has a quote from Eurostar's Director of Engineering, Nicolas Petrovic, at http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1237102/Pictured-Eurostar-passengers-trapped-channel-hours-trains-break-down.html. Talking about the tunnel being a particularly difficult operating environment, he's quoted as saying "It is hot in there, usually 20C, and because it is under the sea it is very salty too which means there are particular challenges".

I thought that the tunnel was bored through a chalk stratum of low permeability, and that the tunnel linings would effectively make it watertight.

[inspector_blakey]

Trains in Northern Scotland would carry hampers of pork pies, mars bars and drinks...

Seriously...?

[John R]

They certainly used to. Although the average number of pax on a Highlands train in winter would be very low, so a hamper would probably do it. 

[plymothian]

I am currently in France, due to return on Tuesday with Eurostar.  I don't hold out much hope.

[grahame]

I am currently in France, due to return on Tuesday with Eurostar.  I don't hold out much hope.

You may do better on the Wednesday ... there's a boat running from Roscoff straight in to Plymouth.

http://www.brittany-ferries.co.uk/2278#return