NEW YEAR'S GRIEVE
Eurostar cancellations: Passengers in tears as trains are cancelled after floods with tornado warning for New Year’s Eve
Cause of the tunnel flooding has been revealed
EUROSTAR passengers have been left huddled on the floor in tears after their trains were axed when a tunnel flooded - as wild weather sparked travel chaos.
Seven yellow weather warnings - including for rain, ice and 75mph galeforce winds - have wreaked havoc while a tornado alert has been issued amid the travel chaos.
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But there is hope at the end of the tunnel as Eurostar announced that services will resume on Sunday.
The operator said the "unprecedented" flooding has been brought under control meaning "at least one tunnel can now be used".
However, Eurostar warned customers to expect further delays and busy stations with only limited services restarting tomorrow.
Eurostar earlier scrapped all services to and from St Pancras today following disruption in tunnels near Ebbsfleet International.
Southeastern Railway further dashed travellers' plans after announcing no trains will run between Ebbsfleet and London St Pancras International.
Meanwhile, speed restrictions were issued on the West Highland Lines from 10am until 9am tomorrow due to the forecast, Network Rail Scotland said.
In their most recent statement, Eurostar said: "Flooding in the Thames tunnels has been brought under control by Network Rail High Speed meaning at least one tunnel can now be used and a full service can operate.
"There will be some speed restrictions in place in the morning which may lead to delays and stations are expected to be very busy.
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"Unfortunately, this unprecedented event has caused major disruption to customers today.
"Customers are encouraged to visit the Eurostar website for more information on their journey and compensation entitlement."
A spokesperson for HS1, which runs the route between London and the Channel Tunnel, said: "Flooding in the Thames Tunnel is being resolved by Network Rail High Speed and the HS1 line will be operational in the morning.
"We understand how frustrating this has been for passengers and apologise for the inconvenience caused at such an important time of the year."
The company has not revealed what initially caused the leak.
Posting on X, Southeastern Railway confirmed: "No Highspeed trains are expected to run today between St Pancras and Ashford International.
"We are working to fix the flooding in the tunnels."
The disastrous flooding has been caused by a "fire control system", according to Thames Water.
In a statement, the company explained: "We believe the incident is in regard to a fire control system and not a Thames Water pipe/asset, however we have a technician on the way to offer support to control the flow of water.
"We will continue to monitor the situation and offer support where needed."
A video taken inside the flooded tunnel shows water gushing onto the tracks from a pipe attached to the tunnel's wall.
Travel journalist Simon Calder said St Pancras International was "in chaos" this morning, after Eurostar scrapped all services - which were "heavily booked".
He told that staff had been working through the night to resolve the delays.
However, their efforts proved unsuccessful and the decision to stop services was made at around 4am.
In response Brits have been forking out hundreds as they scramble to book last minute plane tickets, while others wait for lengthy bus journeys.
"A family heading to Disney told me they were going home to get the car to drive and get either the Euro tunnel or a ferry across the Channel," added Simon.
He told there have been many holidaymakers "in tears" because of destroyed Disney trips.
"It's just been really terrible here, some people are just going home, getting in the car and hoping they can drive to Dover and find a ferry," he told the BBC.
'New Year's plans are cancelled'
A pair of holidaymakers from Australia, who have been adventuring through Europe, now find themselves with nowhere to stay,
Christina David, 25, and Georgina Benyamin, 26, from Sydney, had booked a New Year's Eve trip to Paris but are now waiting in panic after their London St Pancras train was cancelled.
Georgina told Sky News: "Now we have to book a hotel to stay for the night here."
"We've got nowhere to stay," added Christina.
The girls explained how they both forked out a chunk of their savings for an expensive hotel with a view of the iconic Eiffel Tower.
"We travelled Europe on a budget and then like once we hit New Year's we're going to go hard, watch Paris light up, I don't think that's going to happen. I'm going to cry," added a "frustrated, angry, and sad" Georgina.
Christina described tense scenes at the station this morning with "lots of people crying".
The pair are still unsure where they will haul up for the night, although they've managed to book onto another train tomorrow.
"New Year's plans are cancelled," said Georgina.
"We're just hoping that one doesn't get cancelled as well because otherwise we're actually f*****, we don't know what to do," the angry traveller added.
"Trying not to be homeless with children in the cold London night"
Amid the pandemonium at St Pancras, one mum has said her main priority is now "trying not to be homeless with children in cold London night".
Their "dream" family holiday to Disneyland Paris has become a nightmare following the Eurostar chaos.
Luana Andrade, 36, her husband Rondi Oroujo, 32, and their three-year-old son, are currently stuck at the London station with six other relatives including a 13 and seven-year-old.
The distressed mum said: "Our problem is to get a night to sleep because London is really expensive and we don't have an Airbnb to stay at tonight.
"The main problem is where are we going to stay with the kids, then we figure out tomorrow."
Her husband added: "We going to have to rearrange everything I don't think we are going to be able to spend New Year's Eve (in Paris) because even if we get a fight for tomorrow, even if we get a very expensive one, we're going to get there at like 10pm or 11pm."
A devastated Luana explained the holiday had been planned almost a year in advance and was "a big deal" for their Brazilian family due to "expensive" costs.
'Plans are ruined'
Meanwhile, disaster has also struck for a couple who had organised a romantic getaway to Paris.
The newlyweds, who hailed from New York, had been planning a trip to Disneyland after enjoying a holiday in London.
Nicole Carrera, 29, and her husband Christopher, 31, have been forced to book onto a 2.30pm train tomorrow - meaning they will lose out on a non-refundable hotel in Paris.
Nicole, who works for cosmetics firm L'Oreal, told the PA news agency: "We actually got married in October and we had this trip planned before we got engaged.
"We planned this trip because we've always wanted to come to London/Paris.
"We were going to Paris, for like, around the holiday season because, you know, the cities are nice during the holidays and we had never been, it was on our list of places to travel and we just wanted to come visit.
"So we've been in London since Wednesday and we wanted to leave today because we were actually supposed to go to Disney Paris tomorrow for New Year's Eve.
"So obviously those plans are ruined because now we won't get into Paris tomorrow until about 6pm.
"So we're just going to walk around the city (Paris) tomorrow when we get there and finally get to our hotel. It's just one of those things."
She added: "We go to Disney in the States all the time in Florida so we were like, we might as well go while we're there, what a better way to celebrate New Year's, like, there's so many things to do."
FLOODING
It comes as ten million are expected to hit the roads today as revellers prepare for New Year's Eve celebrations.
However, the Met Office has issue seven yellow weather warnings across the UK for rain, wind, snow and ice.
Stormy conditions have also sparked gridlock warnings for the M1, M25 and M4-M5 interchange in Bristol.
Meanwhile, a total of 32 flood warnings have been issued by the Environment Agency covering parts of the River Ouse and the River Severn.
Photographs show Worcester Racecourse completely submerged under floodwater this morning after the River Severn burst its banks.
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In York, flooding wreaked havoc after several homes and businesses, including The Kings Arms pub, were flooded after water rose above four metres when the River Ouse burst its banks.
Those in the village of Mepal, in Cambridgeshire, also woke up to find surrounding fields under water this morning after the New Bedford River flooded.
A further 97 flood alerts, where flooding is possible, have also been put in place.
In addition, a yellow weather warning for wind is in place from 11am today until 3am tomorrow which covers the entire south coast, reaching as far up as Norwich in the east and most of Wales.
The Met Office stated: "A spell of strong and gusty winds will move east across England and Wales, bringing some disruption to travel and services."
There could be "gusts of 45-50 mph widely" but the strongest gales are "likely near coasts in the west and south, with 65-75 mph in places", the warning added.
Met Office Meteorologist Alex Burkill said in a forecast video: "In the south it is going to be relatively mild with highs of around 11C or 12C but with the wind, the rain and the cloud it will be feeling feel pretty unpleasant at times and colder further north, with temperatures here suppressed into mid-single figures.
"Later on Saturday we are going to see the rain and the snow across Scotland, or at least the worst of it, clearing away towards the north east and also that band of rain further south pushing eastwards across parts of England could still be pretty heavy at times - so watch out for that."
In Wales, there's a further yellow weather warning for rain in force from 10am this morning until 6pm.
"Heavy rain may lead to some flooding and transport disruption," stated the Met Office.
The forecast predicts "possible" flooding of a few homes and businesses, as well as more travel chaos and loss of power.
A further alert for rain and snow from 8am until midnight covers the majority of Scotland as up to 25mm of rain is predicted to fall at lower levels.
It is expected temperatures could plummet to -9C degrees in certain areas.
Met Office meteorologist Alex added northern areas are likely to see "significant snow", with possibly 10 to 20cm on the highest ground.
He explained: "As that rain hits the cold air across Scotland, I am expecting some significant snow, particularly over higher ground we could see in excess of 10cm of snow lying and, even to lower levels, some slushy snow is possible.
"This could cause some problems particularly on the roads.
"Elsewhere it is the rain and the strong winds we need to watch out for.
"Heavy rain across parts of Wales and strong gales likely around southern, south-western coastal parts in particular - so a pretty unsettled day."
Three alerts have ended today including a yellow weather warning for ice across the north and north west of Scotland that was in force until 10am.
Meanwhile, in the south of Scotland meteorologists issued a yellow warning for rain and snow that was active until 3pm this afternoon.
In Northern Ireland, an alert for rain was terminated at 11am.
On Sunday, stormy conditions will continue in the far northeast of Scotland however the yellow weather warnings are lifted.
"Blustery showers" are forecast across much of the UK, while temperatures expected to be "nearer to normal".
This comes as Storm Gerrit saw thousands of Brits' holiday plans squashed earlier this week.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
Heavy rain sparked a major incident on the A9 in the Scottish Highlands as emergency services battled "severe conditions".
Meanwhile at least eighteen British Airways flights due in and out of Heathrow were axed as 70mph winds, heavy rain and snow hit the UK.
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