King's Cross station closed due to overcrowding after Storm Babet

Huge crowds gathered at King's Cross station as cancellations left passengers stranded

London's King's Cross station closed on Saturday due to overcrowding during Storm Babet disruption, Network Rail said.

LNER, Avanti West Coast and Northern Rail said their lines were widely flooded, with passengers advised to avoid travelling.

Network Rail said crowd control measures were in place as it worked to manage passenger numbers on platforms.

The station reopened on Saturday evening as the measures were removed.

The company said on X: "Our teams are working hard to get passengers safely on the move."

LNER said there was "an extremely limited service" in place due to flooding between Doncaster and Wakefield.

The service was also affected by speed restrictions in Scotland and trains and crews being out of position after extensive disruption on Friday.

There were no LNER services north of Edinburgh on Saturday and rail replacement services were not available because of road closures.

• Second red alert in week after Storm Babet flooding

The train operator said remaining services could have been subject to short-notice cancellations.

Northern Rail said all lines between Cheadle Hulme in Greater Manchester and Wilmslow, Cheshire, were blocked due to damage to overhead electric wires.

Services were also not running from Sheffield to Nottingham or Lincoln due to flooding.

Trains were unable to travel between Leeds and Doncaster, Harrogate and Bradford.

The line between Newcastle and Morpeth was also closed due to viaduct damage, Northern Rail added.

Avanti West Coast said its services were severely disrupted and asked customers not to travel between Crewe and North Wales. It said people should only travel between Preston and Glasgow or Edinburgh if absolutely necessary.

Listen to the best of BBC Radio London on Sounds and follow BBC London on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [e-mail]