Work to remove a train which derailed at a railway depot in Newcastle remains ongoing.
Dramatic images showed a TransPennine Express service which had come off the tracks and smashedinto concrete near the Heaton depot at around 6.30am on Tuesday. No commuters were on board when the train derailed and it was confirmed there were no injuries as a result of the incident.
Northern Rail have now confirmed that work is underway to remove the train from the tracks by crane. The rail operators were, however, unable to give a timeframe as to how long the removal will take.
Read more: Investigation launched after train derails at Newcastle depot causing travel chaos
A spokeswoman for Northern said: "We are working hard alongside our partners to remove the train from the tracks by crane. It's a complex process so we can't confirm how long it will take yet.”
The derailment lead to widespread disruption on services in and out of Newcastle. As a result, there were cancellations on other routes operated by London North Eastern Railway and Northern Rail.
An investigation was launched and the Rail Accident Investigation Branch has been informed.
A TransPennine Express spokesman at the time said: "Thankfully, no-one was injured, and we are now working with our partners to gets services up and running again as a soon as we can. The Rail Accident Investigation Branch has been informed.
"Customers planning on travelling on affected routes are asked to avoid travel this morning and instead, travel this afternoon."
A spokesman for the Government's Rail Accident Investigation Branch added: "The RAIB has been notified of an derailment which occurred this morning at Heaton depot. RAIB has requested the railway to secure evidence relating to the derailment, this will be reviewed by the Branch and the appropriate course of action decided in the coming days."
