A fire has broken out on the train track near London Victoria station as Brits are being urged to brace themselves for train chaos during the heatwave.
The fire broke out on the track between Wandsworth Road and London Victoria, but has since been extinguished, Southeastern Railways said.
It added in a statement: "A fire next to the track between Wandsworth Road and London Victoria means that all lines to and from the station are currently blocked.
"Trains are being diverted to run from Cannon Street or Blackfriars.
"You can use the following services at no extra cost: London Overground between New Cross, Denmark Hill & Clapham Junction.
A fire broke out on the tracks near London Victoria this morning
Network Rail
Network Rail has warned that the weather could cause lines to “expand and sometimes buckle"
Beresford Hodge
“London Underground between our London terminal stations & Brixton. London Buses between Victoria, Lewisham and Bromley South."
While the cause of the fire is unknown, it comes as scorching temperatures continue across the country, with warm weather expected throughout the rest of the week.
The Met Office said highs of 33C are expected in some areas on Monday afternoon, with central, southern and eastern England all experiencing the rising temperatures during the heatwave.
It could mark the hottest day of the year so far, with the UK’s record high for this year currently standing at 32.7C. It was recorded at Heathrow on June 17.
As a result, Network Rail has warned that the weather could cause lines to “expand and sometimes buckle”.
A Network Rail spokesman said: “With extremely hot temperatures expected this week, our specialist weather teams will be monitoring key hotspot locations to make sure we can keep services running safely and reliably.
“Speed restrictions are likely to be in place in some parts of the network most affected by the hot weather.
“This helps because slower trains exert less force on the track and reduce the likelihood of buckling.
“However, where speed restrictions are in place, journeys can take longer, so we advise passengers to plan ahead and carry a bottle of water with them,” they told the Mirror.
