Kintbury train fire: Passengers disrupted as line blocked

Image source, Newbury Fire Station

Image caption, Fire engines rushed to Kintbury railway station

A fire on a freight train blocked a section of railway line in Berkshire.

The "small" blaze was discovered around 07:00 GMT and the train stopped about one mile from Kintbury station, according to Network Rail.

The driver was able to extinguish the flames and no-one was hurt, it said.

Trains between Newbury and Westbury were cancelled or diverted while a safety inspection of the train was carried out, Great Western Railway said in a tweet.

Newbury Fire Station said it had sent two fire engines to Kintbury station.

Services from Kintbury to Newbury and London Paddington showed as cancelled until 12:00 on GWR's website.

Shortly after midday, Network Rail said the stricken train had been moved and the route between Westbury and Newbury was fully open in both directions.

It added that services from Devon and Cornwall to London were running via an alternative route adding about 30 minutes to journey times.

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