Eurostar trains cancelled after cables cut in northern France
"More than 600 metres of cable were stolen or severed south of the Lille Europe station" on the way between the two capitals, French railway operator SNCF said.
French high-speed TGV and local TER services are impacted, as well as Eurostar routes between Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam.
Advertisement
Around 15 workers, including cable makers, were dispatched to solve the issue, the operator added.
"Trains are being redirected via secondary routes, which increases travel times," said Eurostar spokeswoman Juliette Clement.
"Eurostar advises those who were supposed to travel today to postpone their trip, with free exchanges and refunds available," she added.
All trains between Paris and Lille - including the French high-speed TGV services, local TER trains and the Eurostar - were halted on Tuesday evening after a person was hit by a train and killed close to Lille.
Local paper
La Voix du Nord reported
that the accident happened in the afternoon and caused some disruption, but then a second fatal accident saw the Paris-Lille line closed in both directions.
Some passengers were forced to sleep at London St Pancras station after the final trains back to Paris were cancelled.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Euronews
an hour ago
- Euronews
Paris residents fight ‘Disneyfication' of Montmartre neighbourhood
When Olivier Baroin moved into an apartment in Montmartre about 15 years ago, it felt like he was living in a village in the heart of Paris. Not anymore. Stores for residents are disappearing, along with the friendly atmosphere, he says. In their place are hordes of people taking selfies, shops selling tourist trinkets, and cafés whose seating spills into the narrow, cobbled streets as overtourism takes its toll. Baroin has had enough. He put his apartment up for sale after local streets were designated pedestrian-only while accommodating the growing number of visitors. 'I told myself that I had no other choice but to leave since, as I have a disability, it's even more complicated when you can no longer take your car, when you have to call a taxi from morning to night," he told The Associated Press. Overtourism in European cities From Venice to Barcelona to Amsterdam, European cities are struggling to absorb surging numbers of tourists. Some residents in one of Paris' most popular tourist neighbourhoods are now pushing back. A black banner strung between two balconies in Montmartre reads, in English: 'Behind the postcard: locals mistreated by the Mayor.' Another, in French, says: 'Montmartre residents resisting.' Atop the hill where the Basilica of Sacré-Cœur crowns the city's skyline, residents lament what they call the 'Disneyfication' of the once-bohemian slice of Paris. The basilica says it now attracts up to 11 million people a year, even more than the Eiffel Tower, while daily life in the neighbourhood has been overtaken by tuk-tuks, tour groups, photo queues and short-term rentals. 'Now, there are no more shops at all, there are no more food shops, so everything must be delivered,' said 56-year-old Baroin, a member of a residents' protest group called Vivre a Montmartre, or Living in Montmartre. The unrest echoes tensions across town at the Louvre Museum, where staff in June staged a brief wildcat strike over chronic overcrowding, understaffing and deteriorating conditions. The Louvre logged 8.7 million visitors in 2024, more than double what its infrastructure was designed to handle. A postcard under pressure Paris, a city of just over 2 million residents if you count its sprawling suburbs, welcomed 48.7 million tourists in 2024, a 2 per cent increase from the previous year. Sacré-Cœur, the most visited monument in France in 2024, and the surrounding Montmartre neighbourhood have turned into what some locals call an open-air theme park. Local staples like butchers, bakeries and grocers are vanishing, replaced by ice-cream stalls, bubble-tea vendors and souvenir T-shirt stands. Paris authorities did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Visitors seemed largely to be enjoying the packed streets on a sunny Tuesday this week. 'For the most part, all of Paris has been pretty busy, but full of life, for sure," said American tourist Adam Davidson. "Coming from Washington, D.C., which is a lively city as well, I would say this is definitely full of life to a different degree for sure.' Europe's breaking point In Barcelona, thousands have taken to the streets this year, some wielding water pistols, demanding limits on cruise ships and short-term tourist rentals. Venice now charges an entry fee for day-trippers and caps visitor numbers. And in Athens, authorities are imposing a daily limit on visitors to the Acropolis, to protect the ancient monument from record-breaking tourist crowds. Urban planners warn that historic neighbourhoods risk becoming what some critics call 'zombie cities' - picturesque but lifeless with their residents displaced by short-term visitors. Paris is trying to mitigate the problems by cracking down on short-term rentals and unlicensed properties. But tourism pressures are growing. By 2050, the world's population is projected to reach nearly 10 billion, according to United Nations estimates. With the global middle class expanding, low-cost flights booming and digital platforms guiding travellers to the same viral landmarks, many more visitors are expected in iconic cities like Paris. The question now, residents say, is whether any space is left for those who call it home.
Euronews
2 hours ago
- Euronews
US-led coalition in Syria captures senior IS group commander
US-led coalition forces captured a senior Islamic State commander believed to be the group's leader in a pre-dawn helicopter raid Wednesday near Syria's Turkish border, killing one Iraqi citizen during the operation. The operation took place in Atmeh, a town near the Turkish border, and an IS group commander alleged to be Abu Hafs al-Qurashi was taken away. At the same time, an Iraqi citizen was killed, the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The observatory said the man captured had a French-speaking woman with him, and it is not known if she was taken by US forces or Syrian security, who later cordoned off the area. The US military has not responded to requests from the media for comment, and it is not immediately clear if the man captured is IS' main leader. Two years ago, the IS group announced that a man called Abu Hafs al-Hashemi al-Qurashi had been named as its new leader after Turkish authorities killed his predecessor. The IS jihadist group broke away from al-Qaeda more than a decade ago. It attracted supporters from around the world after it declared a self-proclaimed "caliphate" in 2014 in large parts of Syria and Iraq. Despite its defeat in Iraq in 2017 and in Syria two years later, the IS group's militants still carry out deadly attacks in both countries and elsewhere. All previous IS leaders have adopted Al-Qurashi as part of their surname, implying a connection to Quraish, the tribe to which Islam's Prophet Muhammad belonged. The IS group claims its leaders hail from the tribe, and al-Qurashi is used as a nom de guerre -- all part of the terror organisation's propaganda, as it is largely invented and its handful of leaders are unrelated, according to reports. Its first leader, the self-proclaimed emir and caliph Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, did not take on the Al-Qurashi name, despite claiming he hailed from the tribe without providing evidence.
Euronews
4 hours ago
- Euronews
France probes death of streamer over concerns of 'horrifying' violence
An investigation has been launched in France into the death of a 46-year-old man who livestreamed videos of himself being subjected to abuse and violence. Raphael Graven — who went by Jean Pormanove or JP online — was known for streaming extreme challenges and had built a following of more than 1 million people across various social media platforms, including the live-streaming service Kick. French prosecutors said he died on Monday at a property in the village of Contes, near Nice, according to local media. Graven had reportedly been subjected to violence and sleep deprivation for 10 days during his streaming. Footage shared on social media showed several men choking and beating Graven. In one video, the men noticed that Graven appeared lifeless while lying on a mattress and quickly cut the broadcast. The videos could not be independently verified by Euronews. Clara Chappaz, France's digital affairs and artificial intelligence (AI) minister, said that "the death of Jean Pormanove and the violence he suffered are an absolute horror". "Jean Pormanove was humiliated and mistreated for months live on the Kick platform. A judicial investigation is underway," she wrote on X. Sarah El Haïry, France's high commissioner for children, said his death was "horrifying". "Platforms have an immense responsibility in regulating online content so that our children are not exposed to violent content. I call on parents to be extremely vigilant", she wrote on X. Kick said it was "urgently reviewing" circumstances around the streamer's death. "We are deeply saddened by the loss of Jeanpormanove and extend our condolences to his family, friends and community," a spokeperson said. "Kick's community guidelines are designed to protect creators, and we remain committed to upholding these standards across our platform." Many social media users drew parallels between Pormanove's death and the British dystopian anthology show Black Mirror. In a recent episode, a man harms himself on a livestreaming platform in return for payment from viewers in order to fund life-saving treatment for his ill wife.
