Kings cross st pancras closed: tube station evacuated over fire alert

Transport for London (TfL) said the station, which serves two major rail stations, is shut "while we investigate a fire alert”. Underground trains on the Metropolitan, Circle, Victoria,

Northern and Hammersmith and City lines, Cwere not stopping at the station but were still running through it. Tony Connelly, a reporter for Irish broadcaster RTE, had earlier written on

Twitter he had been evacuated from the station, which is the main arrival point in London for trains from continental Europe. But TfL later confirmed: “Kings Cross St. Pancras: The station

has now reopened and trains are stopping normally at the station.” Passengers and commuters at the station took to social media to express their shock and panic over the situation. One

tweeted: “Don’t know what just happened at kings cross but I almost had a break down on the middle of the train.” Another said: "Emergency declared in #kingscross tube station. Was

ushered back on the train for hasty emergency exit. What's going on #tfl?" This incident followed a day where the capital was on a high security alert after counter-terrorism

detectives were called to three major transport hubs. Police responded to suspicious packages at Waterloo railway station and office buildings at Heathrow and London City Airports. All the

packages were A4-sized white postal bags containing yellow Jiffy bags and appeared capable of igniting a small fire when opened, the Metropolitan Police said. The force stated it was working

"to ensure the safety of the public and staff working at transport hubs and mail sorting offices”. It added: "We have shared images of the exterior packaging of two of the devices

to aid staff in identifying a potentially suspicious package." _(ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY LUKE HAWKER)_