Electrical cable falls on Eurostar train

ON THE EUROSTAR OUTSIDE THE CHANNEL TUNNEL, England — An overhead electrical cable snapped and fell onto a Eurostar train headed from London to Amsterdam, via Brussels on Thursday morning.

In an incident that’s expected to have knock-on effects on the busy route from London to Brussels, the cable fell on a Eurostar train just before 9 a.m. local time amid a flurry of sparks and loud bangs. The train was just about to enter the Channel Tunnel in Kent, but was forced to grind to a halt.

POLITICO’s reporter on the train observed the black cable dangling down the side of the carriage as staff inspected the damage.

“The news is not good,” the train manager told passengers, adding that the Eurostar would be stuck there for some time. A rescue train would need to be sent from London, the manager said.

Without external electricity, the train manager said the emergency lights and air conditioning would soon turn off. A POLITICO reporter on a later Eurostar train from London was informed they would be able to overtake the stationary train on the other track.

Damaged and broken electrical wires can cause severe delays on train lines and in the past have been responsible for electrical accidents, with a train driver receiving a severe electrical shock from a low-hanging live wire in Britain in 2014.