ABC News March 7, 2025

Unexploded WWII bomb in Paris halts Eurostar travel to London and trains to northern France

WATCH: Unexploded WWII bomb in Paris halts rail traffic

Eurostar trains to London, including all trains heading to northern France, stopped abruptly on Friday morning after an unexploded bomb dating back to World War II was discovered near the tracks, officials said.

The unexploded ordinance was discovered approximately 1.5 miles north of Gare du Nord in Saint Denis, an area just north of Paris where the Stade de France – the national stadium of France – is located and where dozens of Olympic events were held, including the closing ceremonies, last year.

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Benoit Tessier/Reuters
Passengers wait inside the departure hall as traffic has been disrupted at the Gare du Nord train station following the discovery of an unexploded bomb dating back to World War Two 2.5 km (1.55 miles) from the train station, in the middle of the train tracks, France, March 7, 2025.

"Traffic is interrupted between Paris Gare du Nord and La Plaine Stade France in both directions and disrupted on the rest of the line. Traffic will not resume until mid-afternoon, after formal authorization from the authorities," France's national train operator SNCF said in a statement on Friday morning. “If possible, we invite you to postpone your trip.”

The reason listed was due to “intervention by law enforcement” following the discovery of an unexploded bomb from the second World War near the tracks at Paris Nord, SNCF said.

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Benoit Tessier/Reuters
French police secure the area close to the site where an unexploded bomb dating back to World War Two was discovered 2.5 km (1.55 miles) from the Paris Gare du Nord train station in Saint-Denis near Paris, France, March 7, 2025.
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Gare Du Nord in Paris is the busiest railway station in Europe by passenger numbers and served over 211 million people alone in 2022.

Dozens of passengers could be seen waiting in the station with their luggage as they watched trains being canceled across the passenger information boards.

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Benoit Tessier/Reuters
French police secure the area close to the site where an unexploded bomb dating back to World War Two was discovered 2.5 km (1.55 miles) from the Paris Gare du Nord train station in Saint-Denis near Paris, France, March 7, 2025.

It is unclear how large the ordinance is or how long it will take authorities to clear the area before regular services resumes.

The investigation is currently ongoing.

ABC News' Joe Simonetti, Morgan Winsor and Tom Soufi-Burridge contributed to this report.