Traffic at Paris’ Gare du Nord train station halted as unexploded World War II bomb found near tracks

Paris — Eurostar trains to and from London and other trains heading northward from Paris were brought to a halt Friday following the discovery of an unexploded bomb dating back to World War II near tracks serving the French capital’s busy Gare du Nord station. The country’s national train operator, SNCF, said in a statement that traffic was stopped at the request of police at France’s busiest rail station. Authorities were working to disable the decades-old device.

French Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot said traffic would be ”strongly disrupted” throughout the day with only limited service resuming in the afternoon, and he urged travelers to postpone their trips.

“All Eurostar trains are cancelled to and from Paris today,” Eurostar said in a statement sent to The Associated Press. “Eurostar sincerely apologizes for the disruption and understands the inconvenience this may cause. We appreciate everyone’s patience and cooperation during this time.”

The bomb was discovered around 4 a.m. by workers doing earth-moving work near the tracks in the Seine-Saint-Denis region. 

Minesweepers were sent to the site and their operation was still going on.

Stranded travelers converged on the station as it opened Friday.

The Gare du Nord is a major European transit hub, serving international destinations north of France such as the EU capital, Brussels, and the Netherlands, as well as the main Paris airport and many regional destinations.

Bombs left over from World Wars I and II are regularly discovered around France and other European countries, but rarely in such a people-packed location. 

Tabarot, speaking on broadcaster Sud Radio, said local residents and people near the train stations should have “no fear” of a risk of explosion, as he stressed the procedures in place for defusing and removing such bombs.

Eurostar, which runs passenger trains through the Channel Tunnel between Britain and the continent, canceled all services between London and Paris on Friday morning and advised passengers to pick another day to travel.

Friday is one of the busiest days of the week at Eurostar’s London hub, St. Pancras Station, as thousands of people leave and arrive for weekend breaks.

Trains between London and Eurostar’s other major destination, Brussels, were unaffected.