What we know about stabbings on Doncaster to London train
"Run, there's a guy stabbing everyone": Eyewitnesses describe attack
- Published
Passengers travelling from Doncaster to London were attacked in a mass stabbing on a train on Saturday night.
Eleven people were injured and received hospital treatment. Two of them remain in a life-threatening condition.
Two British men in their thirties were arrested and police said there was currently "nothing to suggest" it was a terror incident.
Witnesses reported that police used a Taser on one man who was holding a knife.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said the attack was "appalling" and "deeply concerning".
Here is what we know so far about what happened.
Where did the stabbings happen?
The attack took place on the 18:25 GMT London North Eastern Railway (LNER) service from Doncaster, South Yorkshire to London's King Cross station.
Passengers said at least one person brandishing a knife began stabbing people on the train after it passed through Peterborough in Cambridgeshire.
Cambridgeshire Police received the first call from passengers on board at 19:39, and the British Transport Police (BTP) was also alerted at 19:42.
The train made an unscheduled stop at Huntingdon - which is some 15 minutes from Peterborough by train.
Altogether, the incident was estimated to last roughly 10 to 15 minutes - and passengers said it took place towards the rear of the train.
Armed police boarded the train and arrested two men within eight minutes of the call to BTP.
A large emergency service response was also sent to the scene, including air ambulances.
Emergency crews and police rushed to Huntingdon station in Cambridgeshire after 999 calls from the London-bound train
Uninjured passengers were interviewed by police and some boarded a coach bound for London.
Huntingdon MP Ben Obese-Jecty told the BBC there were about 10 ambulances, several fire engines and "well over 20 police cars" when he first arrived at the scene just after 21:00.
The station remained shut on Sunday morning, as well as the A1307 directly outside.
The empty train was still at the platform, while a police presence and forensics tents could also be seen.
What do we know about the suspects?
Supt John Loveless of the British Transport Police said two UK nationals were arrested.
The men, aged 32 and 35, were arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.
Police said the 32-year-old man is a black British national and the 35-year-old is a British national of Caribbean descent.
They have not yet been named and are being held in separate police stations for questioning.
What do we know about the victims?
Emergency crews took 10 people to Addenbrookes Hospital in Cambridge - which is some 30 minutes away from the train station - and one person later went to the hospital for treatment.
Shortly before 11:00 on Sunday, police said two people remained in a life-threatening condition and four had been discharged.
No victims have yet been named.
What have eyewitnesses said?
Forensics officers were at the scene on Sunday inspecting the empty train on the platform
Witnesses told the BBC of panic and confusion as passengers ran through the carriages, some wounded and bloodied.
Alistair Day, 58, told the BBC he hid in the buffet car with about 11 other passengers while the attacker attempted to gain entry.
He had run to to the car after seeing "a guy flailing out - a fracas with arms going everywhere".
He said one passenger turned to him and calmly said he had been stabbed in the chest: "He had blood all over him, so we put pressure and stuff and held him."
Olly Foster said he heard people shouting "run, there's a guy stabbing literally everyone and everything" - and thought at first it might have been a Halloween prank.
He saw an older man with gashes on his head and neck after he "blocked" the attacker from stabbing a younger girl. Passengers then used their jackets to try to staunch the bleeding.
Watch: Police rush to scene of Cambridgeshire train attack
Another witness, Wren Chambers, said one person had been stabbed in the arm and bolted down the train to alert others - while another shouted "someone's got a knife".
Some passengers hid inside the toilets while others swarmed towards the front of the train.
London Underground worker Dean McFarlane said he saw multiple people running down the platform at Huntingdon bleeding, with one man in a white shirt "completely covered in blood".
Another passenger named Steve told the BBC an alarm sounded just after he boarded the train in Peterborough with his children.
"Then a woman came over the Tannoy and said, 'we're aware there's been an incident, just keep yourselves safe,' which is scary to hear."
He said the attack happened at the other end of the train; He was in carriage B, and was told the incident took place in carriage J.
Once the train stopped, he hammered on the doors and "sprinted" away as passengers "piled out" of the train.
He said it was "unnerving not knowing what was happening - and knowing you were basically in a box and you couldn't get out of it if you wanted to".
What have police said?
British Transport Police (BTP) declared a major incident and initially said counter-terrorism officers were supporting the investigation "to establish the full circumstances and motivation for this incident".
The force said it had at one point declared "Plato" - the national code word used by emergency services when responding to a "marauding terror attack" - but later rescinded it.
Supt Loveless later said at a press conference on Sunday morning that "there is nothing to suggest this is a terrorist incident".
Defence Secretary John Healey told the BBC early reports suggested it was an isolated incident.
He added that this was a service he used often - and that he had travelled along the same route just hours before the attack - and paid tribute to the emergency response.
What has the reaction been?
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said the "appalling incident on a train near Huntingdon is deeply concerning".
He wrote on X: "My thoughts are with all those affected, and my thanks go to the emergency services for their response."
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said said her thoughts were with the victims, their friends and family and praised emergency workers who "responded rapidly, with the utmost professionalism and saving lives".
King Charles issued a statement saying he and Queen Camilla extended their "deepest sympathy" to those affected and their loved ones.
"My wife and I were truly appalled and shocked to hear of the dreadful knife attack that took place on board a train in Cambridgeshire last night."
"We are particularly grateful to the emergency services for their response to this awful incident."
Objects scattered across the station floor appeared to include belongings and medical supplies
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch told the BBC she was "horrified" by the attack: "I can only imagine how frightening it must have been to be in an enclosed environment with someone rampaging in that fashion."
She praised the emergency response to the incident and urged people not to speculate, while questioning why "we're seeing more and more violence on our streets" despite efforts to tackle knife crime.
Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey praised the "extraordinary bravery" of passengers who stepped forward to protect others, while Reform UK's head of policy Zia Yusuf told the BBC said people were "being traumatised in this country by the act that we have appalling knife crime".
What is happening with train services?
LNER urged passengers to check before travelling on Sunday, external due to possible cancellations or changes to services.
Tickets for Saturday and Sunday will be valid until Friday, and those who no longer want to travel this week can get a refund.
Lines have reopened between Hitchin and Peterborough. Great Northern and Thameslink trains between London Kings Cross and Peterborough will run, but there may be delays or cancellations.
A rail replacement service is in place to and from Huntingdon, which will remain closed until the end of Sunday.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said passengers would see a "high visibility presence" of police at stations and on trains throughout the day "to reassure the public", and that she was receiving regular updates from the police and LNER.
Get in touch
Were you on the train? Did you witness the attack? Have you been affected?