In Brussels, stations and metro stations are closed, while urban transport is at a standstill. Thalys trains to the Belgian capital are also disrupted, and Eurostar trains to Brussels and Lille are not running at the moment. However, the company may be able to resume services to and from Lille.
Thalys is advising travellers to postpone their journeys and has announced that tickets can be exchanged free of charge, subject to availability, for journeys on 22 and 23 March. Eurostar is also guaranteeing that tickets booked for travel to Brussels and Lille on 22 March will be exchanged free of charge.
In France, security has been stepped up at the Gare du Nord in Paris and at Roissy and Orly airports. The Minister of the Interior, Bernard Cazeneuve, has announced the deployment of 1,600 additional police officers and gendarmes, "both for border controls and for air, sea and rail transport infrastructures". A crisis unit has been set up at the Quai d'Orsay: 01 45 55 80 00.
