International train passengers resorted to using trash cans as toilets while stuck in a 7-hour delay

• A passenger described rising desperation after a train lost power.
• Some passengers used trash cans as toilets, she told The Guardian. 
• The passenger said they had no food or heat and very little water. 

A woman who became trapped on a Eurostar train for more than seven hours described how desperate passengers resorted to using trash cans as toilets.

Karen Cherpin, from Whitstable in England, told The Guardian that she was on her way to attend her daughter's university graduation in Amsterdam in November when the train stopped just outside the tunnel that runs under the English Channel.

"We were initially told that they were waiting for permission to enter the tunnel. As time went by, it became apparent that there was a bigger problem," she said.

"The electricity eventually went out on the train, leaving us with no heat, no food, and little water. The toilet flushing systems ceased to work, and toilets started overflowing as passengers were forced to continue to use them. As the hours ticked by, this became a huge issue. Passengers resorted to using bins as toilets."

Cherpin told the outlet that the train, which had 700 passengers on board, was stopped for more than seven hours following a power failure, and eventually returned to its start destination in London.

"I don't think it was handled very well at all. By the time we were sent back to St Pancras station, I had missed my daughter's graduation, which was devastating. I will never be able to get that back."

At the time of the incident, on November 30, passengers described rising desperation on board the train and a failure by staff to communicate the reason for the train stopping.

Jessica Chambers, from Essex, told BBC: "It truly feels like an emergency situation but there's no communication from staff."

In a statement on X, Eurostar said it had been unable to communicate with passengers because of the power failure, and apologized to customers.

Business Insider has contacted Eurostar for comment.

In recent years UK train passengers have been beset by delays caused by crumbling infrastructure, power outages, staff shortages, and waves of industrial action.