Preston and Lancaster rail services disrupted after heavy winds cause national power outage

Rail passengers are being left stranded at Preston after heavy winds bring chaos to the Virgin Trains network.
Virgin Trains services on the West Coast Mainline are delayed due to weather-related issues in Lockerbie, Scotland.Virgin Trains services on the West Coast Mainline are delayed due to weather-related issues in Lockerbie, Scotland.
Virgin Trains services on the West Coast Mainline are delayed due to weather-related issues in Lockerbie, Scotland.

Services on the West Coast Mainline, which serves Preston, Lancaster and Wigan, have been cancelled due to "weather-related disruption".

The 400-mile line, one of the most important railway corridors in the UK, lost power around 12.30pm after the overhead electric wires lost power between Lockerbie and Carlisle.

The power outage means that trains are blocked on the northbound line and backed up and held further south, including at Lancaster and Preston.