London Paddington fire causes rail chaos as Heathrow trains cancelled | Public transport

Hundreds of passengers were evacuated from trains and services to Heathrow airport were cancelled after a fire near tracks in the London Paddington area caused major disruptions to London’s rail network.

The fire caused an electricity supply failure which left all lines between Paddington and the airport blocked, National Rail said on Saturday afternoon.

Photos on social media showed large plumes of smoke rising from the Paddington area.

London fire brigade was called to the grass fire near Scrubs Lane, North Kensington, just after 4pm on Saturday, with six fire engines and 40 crew tackling the blaze.

Fire crews were also called upon to help evacuate 380 passengers left stranded on an Elizabeth line train.

The Elizabeth line was suspended between Paddington and Heathrow Terminals 4 and 5, and between Paddington and Reading, while the line to Abbey Wood also experienced severe delays.

Passengers travelling to the airport were advised to use the Piccadilly line, although that line also experienced severe delays between Heathrow and Acton Town. There were minor delays along the rest of the line due to an earlier trespasser at Hammersmith, TfL said.

Heathrow airport advised passengers to leave extra time for their journeys.

Great Western Railway (GWR) services to Reading were cancelled, and disruptions were expected until the end of the day.