Eurostar has suspended all of its services between London and Paris on Friday after the discovery of an unexploded Second World War bomb near tracks in the French capital.
Thousands of passengers have had their travel disrupted with videos and images showing people stranded in Paris’ Gare du Nord and London St Pancras.
The bomb has now been defused, French authorities confirmed around 12 hours after it was first found.
Services will only be permitted to resume once “mine clearance operations” by the French police are completed, a Eurostar spokesperson said on Friday, which is typically very busy for the operator.
Bombs left over from the First and Second World Wars are regularly discovered in France, but it is rare for them to be found in such densely-populated areas.
Eurostar said in a statement: “Due to the discovery last night of an unexploded bomb from the Second World War during work carried out on the tracks in St Denis (north of Paris), traffic has been completely halted to and from Gare du Nord.
“As a result, all Eurostar trains are cancelled to and from Paris today.”
France’s national train operator SNCF said in a statement that services at Gare du Nord would be suspended until mid-morning at the request of the police.
Key Points
- Simon Calder | How to get to Paris in a hurry after train cancellations
- Buildings evacuated and six schools under lockdown near bomb site
- Breaking: All Eurostar services suspended for the rest of Friday
- Where was the bomb found - and is there danger?
- In pictures: Passengers stranded as train cancellations rise
- Simon Calder | Rail travellers' rights are much weaker than air travellers'
WWII bomb is diffused by French authorities
15:53 , Alex CroftThe bomb which has provoked travel chaos in London and Paris, causing all Eurostar trains to be cancelled, has now been diffused by French authorities.
Police chief Laurent Nuñez said: “Congratulations to all! The shell dating from the Second World War has been neutralized.
“I thank all the police, emergency services and specialized agents involved in this operation and especially the director of the LCPP. The security perimeters will be lifted.”
Bravo à tous ! L’obus datant de la Seconde Guerre mondiale a été neutralisé. Je remercie l’ensemble des forces de l’ordre, de secours et agents spécialisés impliqués sur cette opération et tout particulièrement le directeur du LCPP. Les périmètres de sécurité vont être levés. pic.twitter.com/ZTRBTFplM9
— Laurent Nuñez (@NunezLaurent) March 7, 2025
Picture apparently showing unexploded bomb shared by rail union chief
15:15 , Alex CroftFabien Villedieu, leader of the SUD rail union shared a picture of the unexploded bomb on social media, which he said weighed 300kg.
voilà la bombe(300kg) découverte cette nuit lors des travaux ferroviaires. pic.twitter.com/zNpRSuRBWC
— Fabien Villedieu (@VilledieuFabien) March 7, 2025
How to get to Paris from London: Flight and ferry options as Eurostar trains cancelled by WWII bomb
14:53 , Alex CroftTravel correspondent Simon Calder reports:
Eurostar says all its 32 trains between London and Paris are cancelled on Friday, leaving an estimated 25,000 passengers out of position.
Tens of thousands of passengers are stranded at either end of the Eurostar link following the discovery of a wartime bomb at St-Denis, a few miles north of Gare du Nord in the French capital.
The closure has happened on the busiest day of the week for Eurostar – and the key day for leisure travellers heading for a weekend away in Paris.
These are the options as at 1.15pm on Friday.
How to get to Paris from London after Eurostar trains cancelled by WWII bomb
Eurostar is offering refunds - how to claim
14:35 , Alex CroftEurostar has confirmed passengers affected by the rail cancellations can claim refunds for their ticket, if they have not changed their journey to a different date of travel.
Here are the options listed by Eurostar on its website:
- Exchange the booking for free to travel in the same class at a different time or date.
- Cancel the booking and claim an e-voucher, which you will have 12 months after the date of the disrupted journey to redeem.
- Cancel your booking and claim a refund. You will received a refund for the value of your ticket within 28 days - but it will not cover the cost of booking or exchange fees.
Eurostar says passengers have three months from the original travel date to claim their preferred option.
Lines to reopen partially on Friday – but all Eurostar trains cancelled until Saturday
14:12 , Alex CroftTravel correspondent Simon Calder reports live from London St. Pancras:
SNCF (French Railways) says domestic services will start to resume this afternoon on the line north from Paris Gare du Nord.
It is telling passengers: "Traffic will not resume until mid-afternoon, after formal authorisation from the authorities, but will remain disrupted until the end of the day."
The operator adds: "We invite you to postpone your trip."
Eurostar, which links London with Paris through the Channel Tunnel, cancelled its entire schedule at about 9am on Friday, UK time.
A spokesperson said: "Tomorrow, we expect normal traffic between Paris and Brussels, and between Paris and London.Eurostar will run two extra trains tomorrow: one leaving London to Paris in the morning, one leaving Paris to London in the afternoon."
Simon Calder | How to get to Paris in a hurry after train cancellations
13:47 , Alex CroftSimon Calder reports live from London St. Pancras:
Car and ferry or Eurotunnel
Lots of room is available on DFDS, Irish Ferries and P&O Ferries sailings from Dover to Calais (and DFDS to Dunkirk) over the weekend.
The same applies for Shuttles from Folkestone to Calais.
Train
The Independent has made multiple attempts to see what seats are available on trains running from London to Lille, from where other surface options – including trains to Marne la Vallée/Disneyland Paris, east of the capital.
But neither the Eurostar app nor the website allows bookings to be made. The app tells customers: “Sorry, something went wrong. Go to the homepage.”
The website simply features an endlessly revolving Eurostar logo. So at present it is impossible to recommend any solutions involving Eurostar.
Train and ferry
The best solution is DFDS from Newhaven to Dieppe, because onward trains via Rouen to Paris serve St-Lazare station in the French capital, which is unaffected by the closure.
P&O Ferries normally carries foot passengers on only a few sailings each day from Dover to Calais. But because of the Eurostar shutdown, it is making more evening sailings available.
You can reach Dover from London easily on the High Speed 1 line from St Pancras to Dover Priory. The ferry fare is £37.25. Foot passenger check-in closes 90 minutes before departure.
From Dunkirk or Calais on the other side of the Channel, the best plan is to head for Lille and try to get a train to Marne la Vallée/Disneyland Paris – or, failing that, a coach.
International coach
Fully booked from London to Paris, though FlixBus is showing a weird connection via Antwerp taking over 17 hours.
Air
Many passengers have chosen to fly from a different UK city – including Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds – to Paris. All such flights for Friday are fully booked.
The same applies to other French cities – though there are seats on easyJet from London Gatwick to Strasbourg on Friday evening, with an early train from the Alsatian city to Paris Est arriving before 9am on Saturday.
Report: Eurostar cancels all trains from London after unexploded WWII bomb found near Paris Gare du Nord station
13:33 , Alex CroftEurostar has cancelled all trains between London and Paris throughout Friday, after the discovery of an unexploded Second World War bomb disrupted traffic at Paris’s busy Gare du Nord station.
“An unexploded bomb from the Second World War was discovered near the tracks,” French national railway company TER said.
The bomb was discovered in the middle of the tracks near Paris sat around 4am, prompting disruption which is affecting both local metros and national and international trains.
Barney Davis and Simon Calder with the full report:
Eurostar trains cancelled as WWII bomb found near Paris Gare du Nord
Parisian 'frustrated' after trip to see partner in London cancelled
13:14 , Alex CroftA Parisian has been left feeling “frustrated” after his trip to see his partner in London was thwarted by the travel chaos.
Lee Bailey, 48, who has an apartment in Paris, was booked on a Eurostar train at around 7.09am but then had to rebook on to a later train at 4.30pm - which was then also cancelled.
He had been hoping to travel to London to spend the weekend with his partner who lives there.
The communications professional told the PA news agency: “There were several hundred people waiting to go through the ticket scanners and passport control who were being held back and people were calm, but it was obviously frustrating.
“I completely understand the need to address the risk, but the process for rebooking has become complicated, and at two points the Eurostar site has asked me to pay to rebook on later trains.”
200 people evacuated, police say
12:55Around 200 people with front doors opening onto the operation area have been evacuated, local authorities have said.
“A mine clearance operation is underway after the discovery of a Second World War shell on the railway tracks in Saint-Denis,” the state services X account for Seine-Saint-Denis says.
“A 500-meter security perimeter has been established around the machine. In preparation for the operation, the police headquarters has already evacuated 200 people whose house doors provide direct access to the operation area.
“Other people located within the security perimeter, in Saint-Denis and Saint-Ouen, are asked to confine themselves to their homes for the duration of the operation.”
#Sécurité
— Préfet de la Seine-Saint-Denis (@Prefet93) March 7, 2025
Une intervention de déminage est en cours après la découverte d’un obus de la seconde guerre mondiale sur les voies ferrées à Saint-Denis.
Un périmètre de sécurité de 500 mètres a été établi autour de l’engin.
En préparation de l’opération, la préfecture de police a… pic.twitter.com/ZxoSSr4Zp2
'It's a bummer': American's first Europe trip left in tatters
12:36 , Alex CroftElla Brown and Charlie Spath had planned on spending the weekend in Paris but have now been forced to try and rebook their train.
Ella, 21, travelled from Orange County, California to visit her friend Charlie, also 21, on his year abroad at City University.
They planned to spend their weekend in France, but are now trying to rebook their Eurostar for tomorrow night.
“It will all work out, but it’s a bummer,” Ms Brown said. “I haven’t been to Europe before.”
They looked at flights “but it’s almost more of a pain,” she said.
LNER offers help to Eurostar passengers who have connections
12:18 , Alex CroftTravel correspondent Simon Calder reports from St Pancras.
One train company that has stepped up to help passengers caught up by the Eurostar shutdown is LNER – which runs on the East Coast main line linking London King's Cross with Yorkshire, northeast England and Scotland.
The state-run rail firm is offering to help out people who are booked on its trains as part of a trip to or from Paris.
It says: "If you've been affected by today's issues in Paris, you can use your existing LNER ticket on an alternative service today or, if you have deferred travel to or from Paris, travel with us on the same day of your new trip.”
Buildings evacuated and six schools under lockdown near bomb site
12:11 , Alex CroftAn evacuation is underway within a 500-metre perimeter which has been set up around the bomb, the city of Saint-Denis has said.
Only homes with windows overlooking the concerned area are being evacuated, the local authority added, presumably due to the risk of shattering glass.
Six schools and a nursing home have been locked down. The city says these establishments “do not present any risk” because they “do not have windows overlooking the area”.
After the evacuation, the bomb disposal operation is expected to take around one hour, during which time the A1 and the ring road in the area will be closed.
This is an 'exceptional situation', says French transport minister
11:52 , Alex CroftThe French transport minister has said the discovery of a WWII bomb and the ensuing travel chaos is an “exceptional situation”.
"The mine clearance is continuing," he said according to Le Parisien, adding that road traffic in the area “could” start again from 4pm.
But its also possible that traffic will not reopen until the evening or even tomorrow morning.
"We are really in an exceptional situation," Mr Tabarot added.
Watch: All trains cancelled after WWII bomb found near Paris Gare du Nord Station
11:45 , Alex Croft
Bride-to-be nearly misses out on hen party
10:57 , Alex CroftCharlotte Liddell, a bride-to-be, was on the way to her own hen party when her group discovered the cancellations.
Others in the party are already in Paris, having flown from northern England.
The London resident will fly from Leeds Bradford Airport and hopes to be in Paris this evening.
“It’s the hen do without the hen!” she said. “We’re very upset, but it’s so out of our control.”
Fran Birch, who will be a maid of honour, said: “We’ve got all the decorations with us.”
About the bomb, she joked: “It’s from World War Two. Just let it lie.”
Eurostar cancellations: Your rights to a refund after WWII bomb discovered near Paris Gare du Nord
10:31 , Alex CroftTens of thousands of passengers are stranded at either end of the London-Paris Eurostar link following the discovery of a wartime bomb at St-Denis, a few miles north of Gare du Nord in the French capital.
The closure has happened on the busiest day of the week for Eurostar. Besides large numbers of business passengers shuttling between London and Paris, Friday is the key day for leisure travellers heading for a weekend away.
Eurostar says all its 32 trains on the link are cancelled, leaving 25,000 passengers out of position.
When plans start unravelling for Eurostar passengers, they can go very wrong indeed.
The Independent’s travel correspondent Simon Calder reports:
Eurostar: Your rights after trains cancelled due to WWII bomb near Paris Gare du Nord
Passengers bemoan ruined holidays after Eurostar cancellations
10:17 , Alex CroftCharlotte Kidd, who travelled to London from Bath last night to get to Disneyland Paris for her 30th birthday this weekend, said she was still hopeful of getting there in time.
She said: “We’ve got two hours. If not, we’ll try and get there some other way.”
Emma Roe, part of a group of eight friends, said they were looking up flights to go “maybe to Amsterdam from Luton, just somewhere else”.
“There’s no booking until 6pm tonight.
“We’re all parents, so we don’t want to lose our free weekend.”
Eurostar full statement
10:00 , Alex CroftAfter earlier cancelling a dozen trains, Eurostar has now cancelled all trains on Friday between London and Paris.
The train operator said in a statement: “Due to the discovery last night of an unexploded bomb from the Second World War during work carried out on the tracks in St Denis (north of Paris), traffic has been completely halted to and from Gare du Nord.
“As a result, all Eurostar trains are cancelled to and from Paris today.”
Watch: WWII bomb discovery halts all train traffic at Paris’ Gare du Nord
09:49 , Alex CroftBreaking: All Eurostar services suspended for the rest of Friday
09:30 , Alex CroftEurostar has announced that all its services between London and Paris will be suspended throughout Friday after the bomb discovery.
The train operator had previously told passengers to expect disruption because of “an object on the tracks”, and advised them to “change your journey for a different date of travel”.
Services will only be permitted to resume once “mine clearance operations” by the French police are completed, the spokesperson added.
Two unlucky holidaymakers 'hoping and praying' second attempt to get to Paris succeeds
09:15 , Alex CroftThe Independent’s travel correspondent Simon Calder reports:
The two unluckiest Paris weekenders have been caught up in the Eurostar chaos.
Joe and Laura Booth, from Hull, were supposed to be flying to Paris last month from their local Humberside airport for a birthday celebration for Laura. But their airline, KLM, wrongly denied them boarding – falsely claiming Laura’s passport had expired.
They rescheduled the trip – but booked on Eurostar from London because they did not trust the airline to get them to the French capital.
Joe Booth told The Independent: “It was chaotic at St Pancras this morning. We got checked in 4.45am, into departure lounge and didn’t hear a thing about a delay until 15 minutes before we were due to depart at 6.01. So we had to think on our feet – the queue for the information desk was outrageous.
“We checked online for the French public transport pages and it was suggesting lines would reopen at 9 or 10am French time.
“With this in mind, [we] took a punt and paid £600 for fresh tickets – the only ones we could find before this evening, in first class on the 9.31am Eurostar to Paris.
“The 9.31am has already been cancelled but we’ve moved the booking to the 12.31pm.
“We are currently in the first class lounge hoping and praying lines reopen this morning and we get there around 4pm French time.
“If the 12:31 is cancelled, then I think unfortunately it’s back home again. We’ve got too much luggage to fly really, well at least as cabin bags, we would have to check some into the hold.
“But with thousands of people in the same position, we have probably missed the boat now on a flight for today.
“We’ve booked and paid for a floating restaurant tonight as a treat given all the stress of last time. If we don’t get there before 5pm French time, we are probably going to lose that and been honest, anything after 5pm would render the trip pretty useless anyway.”
Picture apparently showing unexploded bomb shared by rail union boss
08:55 , Alex CroftFabien Villedieu, leader of the SUD rail union shared a picture of the unexploded bomb on social media, which he said weighed 300kg.
voilà la bombe(300kg) découverte cette nuit lors des travaux ferroviaires. pic.twitter.com/zNpRSuRBWC
— Fabien Villedieu (@VilledieuFabien) March 7, 2025
Where was the bomb found - and is there danger?
08:38 , Alex CroftThe bomb which has prompted chaos on the Eurostar was discovered at around 4am by workers doing earth-moving work near the Seine-Saint-Denis of northeast Paris.
Minesweepers were sent to the site, and their operation to guarantee the area is safe is still going on.
It isn’t uncommon for bombs left over from the World Wars to be discovered in France - but to find them in such a people-packed location is rare.
French transport minister Philippe Tabarot told broadcaster Sud Radio that local residents and people near the train stations should have "no fear" of a risk of explosion, stressing the procedures in place for defusing and removing such bombs.
In pictures: Passengers stranded as train cancellations rise
08:27 , Alex Croft
Simon Calder: Rail travellers' rights are much weaker than air travellers'
08:15 , Alex CroftSimon Calder, The Independent’s Travel Correspondent, tackles the consumer issues arising from the Eurostar closure.
The closure has happened on the busiest day of the week for Eurostar.
Besides large numbers of business passengers shuttling between London and Paris, Friday is the key day for leisure travellers heading for a weekend away.
Eurostar says: “You can exchange your ticket for free to travel at a different time or date in the same travel class.”
Were this affecting airlines, rather than trains, passengers would have a wide range of rights, including alternative transport as soon as possible, plus meals and hotels as they wait.
But rail travellers’ rights are much weaker.
Many passengers will have booked accommodation in Paris, which they may not be able to cancel. Travel insurance may provide some recompense.
Report: Eurostar cancels all trains from London after unexploded WWII bomb found near Paris Gare du Nord station
08:09 , Alex CroftEurostar has cancelled all trains from London until at least mid-morning after the discovery of an unexploded Second World War bomb disrupted traffic at Paris’s busy Gare du Nord station.
“An unexploded bomb from the Second World War was discovered near the tracks,” French national railway company TER said.
The disruption is affecting both local metros and national and international trains.
Eurostar’s website shows that at least four trains scheduled to depart from Gare du Nord on Friday morning have been cancelled so far, while six trains departing Paris for London have also been cancelled.
Andy Gregory and Simon Calder report:
Eurostar trains cancelled as WWII bomb found near Paris Gare du Nord
Eurostar cancellations rising swiftly
08:07 , Alex CroftTravel correspondent Simon Calder with the latest:
The number of cancellations on Eurostar is rising swiftly.
The first four departures from London St Pancras International to Paris Gare du Nord have been cancelled, with the first train that is expected to run at 10.31am.
In the opposite directly, the first six trains are cancelled – with the first departure not expected to leave until the afternoon, as 12.09pm.
Friday is an extremely busy day for Eurostar, and later trains are heavily booked.
Passengers are being advised to book on later days.
WW2 bomb discoveries rare in densely populated Paris
08:02 , Barney DavisThe Gare du Nord is a major European transit hub, serving international destinations north of France as well as the main Paris airport and many regional commuters.
Bombs left over from World War I or World War II are regularly discovered around France but it is very rare to find them in such a people-packed location.
Eurostar calls on passengers to avoid travel today
07:59 , Barney DavisEurostar has warned passengers to avoid using the service today after a Second World War bomb was found near the tracks in Paris.
They said: "Due to the presence of an object on the tracks near Paris Gare du Nord, we are expecting disruption to our services this morning. Please change your journey to another travel date.”
The disruption was caused by "the discovery during the night of an unexploded bomb from the Second World War during work carried out upstream of Paris Gare du Nord," SNCF management said.
