Smoke fills Holland Park Tube station

A passenger who was stuck on a Tube train which was filling with smoke has said she thought she was going to die.

The Central Line train was held at Holland Park station after the train began to fill with smoke, believed to have been caused by the brakes.

Passenger Mica Pocock, from Uxbridge, said people panicked as nobody told them what was happening.

London Underground said the station was closed for 30 minutes while the fire brigade investigated the smoke.

'Risking lives'

Ms Pocock got on the train at Holland Park early on Sunday evening and said she was sat waiting for the train to move for about 30 seconds before the train jolted.

She then noticed a strong smell of burning plastic and a thin level of smoke moved through the train.

A video posted online shows passengers desperately trying to get off the train.

"Men were trying to prise the doors open, but nothing worked. People were climbing out of the doors - they were risking lives as they could have fallen on tracks," said Ms Pocock.

She added people were pressing the emergency buttons but nothing happened.

After five minutes, she tried to get off the train however as she was unable to open the door fully, she wedged the door with her knee so some fresh air could get in. She said her knee is now badly bruised and swollen.

The doors were then opened and everyone flooded out, in a panic to get out the station.

'What's going on?'

Ms Pocock said as there was no information about what happened, people began to panic even more.

She said this was made worse when a station worker ran down to the platform shouting "What's going on?"

"He looked panicked so then everyone else did," she said.

"I didn't know if it was a bomb, I didn't know if the station was going to go up in flames - you just think the worst in those situations.

"I thought 'I'm going to die, I'm going to die on the Underground' - it felt like a lifetime."

Nigel Holness, operations director for LU, said the station was closed for 30 minutes and London Fire Brigade (LFB) was called as a precaution.

"We apologise to customers for the inconvenience. A station supervisor opened one of the doors to allow customers off the carriages before other train doors were opened.

"We worked hard to reopen the station as soon as possible and resume services."