Grass fire shuts Heathrow rail links and strands hundreds near Paddington

Updated 5 September 2026, 23:19 CEST — A grass fire near Scrubs Lane in North Kensington halted trains between London Paddington, Heathrow Airport and Reading on Saturday afternoon, causing widespread cancellations across the airport rail links. London Fire Brigade said it received the first call at 16:11 BST and later confirmed that firefighters brought the blaze under control at 20:36 BST.

Six fire engines and about 40 firefighters attended, supported by crews from Hammersmith, Paddington, Ealing and surrounding stations, according to London Fire Brigade. The brigade said the fire affected the Elizabeth line and the Great Western Main Line into Paddington. It also reported that firefighters and Transport for London safely evacuated around 380 passengers from an Elizabeth line train stranded during the incident. No injuries were reported in the brigade’s published update.

National Rail described the resulting disruption as major and said passengers faced cancellations, delays and altered journeys on services operated by the Elizabeth line, Great Western Railway and Heathrow Express. The BBC reported that all trains serving Heathrow from Paddington had been halted and that disruption was expected to continue until the end of Saturday. Heathrow’s official travel page directed passengers to consult National Rail, Transport for London and Heathrow Express for the latest service information.

The disruption severed the two principal direct rail connections between central London and Heathrow: the Elizabeth line and Heathrow Express. The Piccadilly line remained an alternative route, although the BBC reported separate delays on that service during the evening. Travellers were advised by the operators to check their journeys and allow additional time rather than travel to Paddington without a confirmed connection.

For passengers travelling from Belgium, the impact was indirect but practical. Eurostar services terminate at London St Pancras, so anyone continuing across London to Heathrow faced a disrupted onward journey and needed to verify an alternative route before departure. Eurostar itself was not reported as affected by the fire.

The immediate emergency has ended, but the transport recovery remains the central issue. Rail operators must inspect the affected infrastructure, reposition trains and crews, and clear the accumulated passenger backlog. The cause of the grass fire, the extent of any railway damage and the precise timetable for a full service remain unconfirmed. Passengers travelling on Sunday should consult live operator information before setting out, particularly because National Rail had already scheduled early-morning engineering changes affecting Heathrow Express.