ALL trains have been stopped through Birmingham New Street station after a fault developed on overhead electric cables as Britain records its hottest day in history.

Passengers are being advised not to travel with all trains currently stopped through the major station this afternoon (Tuesday July 19) until further notice.

Network Rail said its rapid response team is dealing with a fault involving the 25,000 volt overhead electric cables outside of the station which power trains through the area.

All power has been switched off to the high-voltage cables bringing all trains to a stop.

Engineers are working as fast as they can to fix the issue and get services back on the move but at this time, there is no estimate as to when services will resume.

Denise Wetton, Network Rail’s Central route director, said: “As predicted the extreme temperatures have impacted our overhead cables which power trains and we’ve had to stop all trains at Birmingham New Street station.

“Please keep following our ‘do not travel’ message today as journeys are being severely impacted. We’re sorry to people impacted and we’re working as fast as we can to get things back up and running.”

There is ticket acceptance in place on local buses across the West Midlands.

As this incident is ongoing people are being advised to:

• Check National Rail Enquiries at www.nationalrail.co.uk for the latest travel information

• Follow Birmingham New Street station’s Twitter account @NetworkRailBHM

• Follow the Twitter account of their train operator

People are being reminded to not travel today and to make their journeys after the heatwave has passed.