Eurostar, operator of the sleek speedy trains that usually make rail travel between the UK and the continent a breeze, announced the cancellation of all its services to and from its hub in the French capital.
Bright red signs warning of service disruptions greeted rail users at the usually humming Gare du Nord station, their travel plans thrown into disarray during the morning rush hour.
The repercussions quickly rippled beyond France’s borders. In Brussels, trains to Paris were cancelled until at least Friday afternoon.
Eurostar, which runs passenger trains through the Channel Tunnel between Britain and the continent, said its “sincerely apologizes for the disruption and understands the inconvenience this may cause.
Bombs left over from World War I or World War II are regularly discovered around France but it is very rare to find them in such a people-packed location. The SNCF said rail traffic was stopped at the request of police, the AP reported.
The bomb was discovered around 4 am by workers doing earth-moving work near the tracks in the Seine-Saint-Denis region that borders Paris to the north. Bomb disposal experts were sent to the site.