‘Major disruption’ as fire near Paddington station blocks lines to Heathrow
A grass fire near a train track in the London Paddington area has caused major disruption, with services to Heathrow Airport cancelled until the end of Saturday evening.
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The fire caused an electricity supply failure, which left all lines between Paddington and the airport blocked, National Rail said on Saturday afternoon.
The Heathrow Express will not run trains in either direction for the remainder of the evening, it said, while Great Western Railway (GWR) warned of disruption until the end of the day.
London Fire Brigade said six fire engines and around 40 crew members tackled the blaze near Scrubs Lane, North Kensington, where it was called at just after 4.10pm on Saturday.
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It added that 380 passengers left stranded on an Elizabeth Line train were evacuated by the fire service and Transport for London (TfL).
Photos on social media showed large plumes of smoke rising from the Paddington area.
GWR services to Reading were cancelled because of the incident, while the Elizabeth line was part-suspended.
Heathrow Airport advised passengers to leave extra time for their journeys, adding the Piccadilly line, which runs services to the airport, was experiencing delays.
TfL said the Elizabeth line was suspended between Paddington and Heathrow terminals four and five, and between Paddington and Reading, and there were severe delays across the entire line.
Severe delays affected the entire Piccadilly line due to an earlier trespasser at Hammersmith, according to the TfL website.
GWR said trains may be cancelled, delayed or terminated at and started back from Reading.