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France

Green light for Channel Tunnel after fire on lorry forced closure

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By Joanna Gill
Green light for Channel Tunnel after fire on lorry forced closure

Firefighters have given the all-clear for Channel Tunnel services to resume after a lorry fire saw trains cancelled on Saturday.

We can't get home to Belgium, so we'll have to queue up and hope we can get back

Though the smouldering truck had not caused significant damage, Eurotunnel warned of delays of up to one hour, with only one of the tunnels being reopened.

Up to 26 trains were cancelled, leaving passengers in London and Paris and Brussels stranded.

“We can’t get home to Belgium, so we’ll have to queue up and hope we can get back tomorrow,” said one passenger on Saturday night.

Another said: “We’ll hopefully get a room somewhere to spend the night. But most hostels I’ve called are fully booked. So, I’m not quite sure what I’m gonna do next.”

The rail operator had warned that those who had reservations for Saturday shouldn’t come to stations unless they had already been re-booked.

Passengers travelling by car were redirected onto ferries, but many were left waiting hours without word on whether they would make it to their destination.

“I’ve spent more than five hours on the road. I left Berlin at 5am, so I’d like to sleep in my own bed, over in Great-Britain,” said one disgruntled traveller.

The fire occurred on the French side of the tunnel, forcing trains en route back to their point of origin, while 42 people were evacuated from the truck shuttle.

An investigation is underway to determine the cause of the fire.

Although not everyone was upset.