TRAIN services have returned to normal after an attempted cable theft caused a fire on the over head lines.

Passengers were evacuated from the trains after the fire started at around 8.15am this morning on lines to the east of Pitsea station on the C2C line.

Replacement rail services ran between Leigh and Laindon and Leigh and Stanford-le-Hope between around 8am and 3pm.

Once it has been put out engineers must be make sure the line is safe before trains can start running again.

Network Rail spokesman Russell Spink said: ”We are going to have to carry out a thorough investigation but we are hopeful of running a full service by the evening peak.”