Hundreds of ScotRail passengers were forced to evacuate an Edinburgh-bound train on Friday morning after a lightning strike caused an electrical fault. The 6.54am service from Helensburgh Central to Edinburgh was stopped at Livingston North station around 8.20am following the incident, which passengers described as frightening.
Passengers Describe Terrifying Moment
One passenger told Edinburgh Live: "Scary morning, you actually felt the train slightly shutter and it made some amount of noise. Lights flickered and before we knew it, we were escorted off. Luckily enough we were just stopping at the station." Footage from the platform showed a large crowd of passengers disembarking amid heavy rain.
Train Removed for Inspection
After the evacuation, the train was taken back to the depot for inspection. ScotRail customer operations director Phil Campbell apologized for the disruption, stating: "We’re sorry to customers who experienced disruption to their journey this morning. Anyone who was delayed by 30 minutes or more is entitled to claim compensation through the Delay Repay Guarantee on the ScotRail website or app."
Wider Disruption Across Scotland
The incident occurred after thunderstorms swept across Scotland on Friday morning, with over 100,000 lightning strikes recorded by the Met Office. Many passengers were stranded due to damaged overhead power cables, leading to cancellations at Scotland's busiest stations. Additionally, East Lothian passengers faced delays from a signalling fault at Wallyford, affecting services between Edinburgh and North Berwick or Dunbar. ScotRail advised that Network Rail was working to rectify the fault.
