Person hit by a train near Gatwick Airport - 'All lines blocked'

Southern Rail reported at midday today (Tuesday, January 2) that all lines are blocked via Redhill.

"It is with great sadness that we report a person has been hit by a train between Gatwick Airport and Purley,” a statement on X (formerly Twitter) read.

"All lines (via Redhill) are blocked between these station whilst the emergency services work to deal with this incident.

“Lines are blocked between Gatwick and Purley via Redhill. Some trains will still run between these stations, but they will not call at stations via Redhill.”

If you are travelling via Redhill, you will need to use an alternative route to reach your destination, Southern said, adding: “Please note that using alternative transport will extending your journey by up to 30 minutes.”

Tickets are being accepted, at no extra cost, on the London Underground, London buses and Metrobus routes.

This incident comes after a key part of the railway line in Sussex was flooded after heavy rain in the county – with two weather warnings in place.

After the arrival of Storm Henk in the UK, Southern Rail reported at 11am that there have been ‘reports of flooding’ between Barnham and Horsham.

"Severe weather is expected to affect train services across the South East of England today,” a spokesperson for Southern added.

“Network Rail have applied speed restrictions of 40 miles per hour to multiple routes south of London.

"This will affect trains which run along the south coast, as well as between Three Bridges and Brighton, with journeys on these routes taking up to 30 minutes longer than usual.”