LONDON, Feb. 12 (UPI) -- Eurostar had no plan to evacuate multiple broken-down trains when snow caused failure of service in the English Channel Tunnel, independent experts said Friday.
In a government-ordered review, the experts scrutinized the chaos that hit the high-speed rail service linking Britain and France Dec. 18-19, when five trains broke down in the tunnel.
Thousands of passengers were trapped for up to four hours after a 17-inch snowfall.
The review said passengers endured overflowing toilets on trains and cold and darkness for hours and that Eurostar should have been better prepared to cope with the disruption, The Times of London reported.
The breakdowns happened because snow got under the trains' winter cladding and then melted as they passed into the warmth of the tunnel, the review said. The resulting condensation caused electrical problems.
The experts made 21 recommendations concerning the reliability of Eurostar trains, evacuation and rescue procedures and the way Eurostar manages disruption. The review also demanded better crisis management between Eurostar and the owners of the tunnel, Eurotunnel, in case of more train breakdowns.
The review was headed by Christopher Garnett, the former boss of the GNER East Coast Main Line, and French transport expert Claude Gressier.
