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First Great Western apology over passengers stranded on train | |
(about 4 hours later) | |
First Great Western has apologised after hundreds of passengers were stranded in a broken-down train for almost six hours. | |
The operator said there were just under 500 people on the Penzance to London Paddington service when it stalled near Pewsey, Wiltshire. | |
It said the delay was "unacceptable" and refunds would be given. | |
Passengers described the journey as "horrific" and claimed they were "treated like cattle". | |
The train was at a standstill for five hours and 40 minutes, arriving at Paddington at about 22:15 BST. | |
It was caused by a fractured air pipe, which caused the brakes to lock. | |
A woman on board told the BBC: "They ran out of food pretty quickly. They ran out of food the first or second hour into the breakdown and then water - I think they were given out water to children and the elderly but that was about it." | |
Another passenger added: "The train was overcrowded before it even broke down. There was probably 20 or 30 people in each carriage who couldn't sit down." | |
A spokeswoman for First Great Western said: "I'm really sorry for the significant delay experienced by our customers on the 11am train from Penzance to London Paddington. | |
"A delay of this magnitude is unacceptable and a full investigation will be carried out." | |
'Extensive work' | |
She added: "Our priority was to make sure our customers were looked after on the train and to get them moving as soon as we could. | |
"After extensive work to the train to get it moving, customers were met at Reading and London Paddington to make sure they could get to where they needed to go." | |
A number of people on board the train vented their frustration on Twitter. | A number of people on board the train vented their frustration on Twitter. |
One customer named Sarah tweeted that passengers had been "treated like cattle", adding: "No food, no water, no air con, no toilets flushing! | One customer named Sarah tweeted that passengers had been "treated like cattle", adding: "No food, no water, no air con, no toilets flushing! |
"Management on trains not communicating with passengers at all." | "Management on trains not communicating with passengers at all." |
Mike Haydock tweeted: "Horrific journey with @FGW - train just started moving again after a five-and-a-half-hour standstill." |