Eurostar resumes operations amid delays and unsettled weather – live

Eurostar said: “Flooding in the Thames tunnels has been brought under control by Network Rail High Speed meaning at least one tunnel can now be used and a full service can operate.

“There will be some speed restrictions in place in the morning which may lead to delays and stations are expected to be very busy.

“Unfortunately, this unprecedented event has caused major disruption to customers today.

“Customers are encouraged to visit the Eurostar website for more information on their journey and compensation entitlement.”

As we bid farewell to 2023, unsettled weather will continue to persist in the UK with the start of 2024 promising a blend of rain, gale-force winds, and a touch of frost, according to the Met Office forecast.

Sunday will see blustery showers across the nation, with a glimmer of respite in the north and east, while in the far northeast of Scotland, rain and gale-force winds persist.

The first day of 2024 will kick off on a drier note, the forecast shows, offering a temporary respite. However, scattered showers decide to crash the New Year’s party in the north. As the day progresses, clouds are set to gather momentum from the southwest, with rain making its way northeast.

While the south enjoys mild temperatures, the rest of the country will see settle for averages – a classic start to the year.

Eurostar services are set to resume today with one tunnel now operational, the company said in a statement. However, it warned commuters to expect further delays and busy stations.

The “unprecedented” flooding was brought under control on Saturday night, Eurostar said, meaning “at least one tunnel can now be used”.

But speed restrictions and uncertainty surrounding the second tunnel means further disruption is possible, the operator has warned.

Delays and cancellations are also expected on some domestic routes on Sunday thanks to staff shortages and bad weather.

While the flooding of high-speed tunnels beneath the River Thames has already caused chaos, staff shortages are also set to compound the transportation woes on New Year’s Eve.

Northern Rail has warned of “significant” disruption today due to train crew unavailability.

Services will finish earlier than usual, at around 4pm, and are expected to be “extremely busy”.

The company has issued a “do not travel” warning for these four routes including Heysham to Lancaster, Manchester Victoria to Stalybridge and Clitheroe to Bolton

LNER has also cancelled and altered some of its services from London King’s Cross station for tomorrow due to a shortage of train crew.

Passengers stranded at St Pancras said the disruption had ruined their New Year’s Eve plans, which included going to Disneyland, seeing the Eiffel Tower, and going to an ice hockey match.

Two newlyweds visiting from New York said their dream of seeing in the new year at Disneyland Paris was in tatters.

Nicole Carrera, 29, and her husband Christopher, 31, had to rebook for a 2.30pm outbound train on Sunday.

Ms Carrera, who works for cosmetics firm L’Oréal, told the PA news agency: “We’ve been in London since Wednesday and we wanted to leave today because we were actually supposed to go to Disney Paris tomorrow for New Year’s Eve.

“So obviously those plans our ruined because now we won’t get into Paris tomorrow until about 6pm.”

Air fares between Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam and London have predictably soared, and many flights have sold out.

The last seat on a British Airways flight from Paris to London on New Year’s Eve was sold at a one-way fare of almost £700.

There is no possibility of an airline-style payout of hundreds of pounds. The best you can hope for is, if you travel with Eurostar, you may get the cost of your ticket refunded and/or a voucher for a future journey – despite having (eventually) travelled.

Although Eurostar said services would return on Sunday, it warned of delays and busy stations.

The company said: “There will be some speed restrictions in place in the morning which may lead to delays and stations are expected to be very busy.”

The Met Office has warned there could be disruption to domestic journeys this weekend, as windy conditions sweep across the UK.

A warning for rain and snow has been issued for much of Scotland.

The cause of the leak is not yet clear.

Reports initially suggested the flooding was caused by a “fire control system”. In a statement, Thames Water said: “We have been informed of an incident involving a pipe flooding the Eurostar tunnel. We believe the incident is in regard to a fire control system and not a Thames Water pipe/asset, however we have a technician on the way to offer support to control the flow of water.”

But a spokesperson for HS1, which runs the route between London and the Channel Tunnel, said: “The source of the flooding will be the subject of an investigation, but at this stage we have no evidence to suggest that the fire control system was related to the issue in any way.”