Thousands of travellers faced a New Year's Eve travel catastrophe as a major disruption in the Channel Tunnel left Eurostar passengers stranded on trains for over twelve hours and forced LeShuttle customers to evacuate and walk through the service tunnel.
A Night of Darkness and Disruption
The crisis began on Monday, 29th December, when Eurostar was forced to axe all services from London to Europe. The cause was a dual failure: an overhead power supply problem combined with a broken-down LeShuttle train, which together blocked all routes through the vital cross-Channel link.
While some limited services resumed on a single line by Monday evening, further rail infrastructure issues overnight plunged passengers back into chaos. Videos from inside darkened carriages showed the grim reality for those trapped, with no working toilets, heating, or electricity to charge phones.
Passenger Ghislain Planque told French TV station BFM that his journey from London to France, meant to take 90 minutes, stretched to a staggering 11 hours. "We were left without electricity, so with no heating, no air-conditioning, no possibility to charge phones," he said. "We were in total darkness for some of the time."
Passenger Ordeals: 12-Hour Journeys and Tunnel Walks
One passenger, James Weatherby, detailed a gruelling ordeal to the Daily Mail. After his initial 11.04am service from St Pancras to Lille was cancelled, he boarded a later train at 7pm. After waiting for crew, they departed London at 9pm, only to halt before the Channel Tunnel around 9.30pm. The power then cut out, leaving them with only emergency lighting until about 2.30am.
After being moved by a locomotive to an area near Folkestone with power, they finally arrived in Lille at 7.08am—roughly 12 hours after first boarding.
Meanwhile, a separate drama unfolded for those on LeShuttle. TikTok user HollyJohn82 filmed the "scary" moment passengers were evacuated from a broken-down train inside the tunnel itself, roughly 45 minutes into its journey from Folkestone to Calais. They were guided into the central service tunnel and transported to the French end in golf buggy-type vehicles.
"We got driven in golf buggy type vehicles to France end and then they towed the train about 9am this morning," Holly posted. "It was definitely a bit scary but you're already down there so just have to try stay calm."
Ongoing Delays and a History of Problems
Despite services resuming on Tuesday, 30th December, Eurostar warned of continued knock-on delays and possible last-minute cancellations. The first scheduled train from St Pancras to Paris was cancelled, and subsequent services faced significant delays.
This incident is the latest in a string of major disruptions for Eurostar passengers over the past two years. These have included:
- August 2025: A power failure in northern France.
- June 2025: Severe delays caused by track fatalities and the theft of 600 metres of copper cable near Lille.
- March 2025: Services suspended after the discovery of an unexploded Second World War bomb in Paris.
- December 2023: 24 hours of chaos for 36,000 passengers due to flooded tunnels in Kent.
Travel expert Simon Calder described the situation as "an absolutely miserable day for at least 25,000 passengers," noting that when things go wrong in the Channel Tunnel, "it goes very wrong indeed."
In response to the crisis, Eurostar announced it was offering affected customers enhanced compensation, including a full refund and a 150% e-voucher based on their ticket price. Passengers are advised to check the Eurostar website for live updates and information on their compensation rights.
