Passengers were evacuated from a train heading from London to Norwich several hours after it broke down.

The 4pm train from London Liverpool Street broke down in Shenfield, Essex, shortly after departure and passengers were later evacuated onto a replacement train.

However, the stranded passengers were not able to continue their journeys until after 8.15pm.

Greater Anglia has now apologised for the delays but said they were unable to send a rescue train due to "extensive disruptions" caused by an earlier incident at Chadwell Heath, where a person was hit by a train.

A spokesperson said: “This incident affected access to the depot, so we had to find an alternative way of solving the situation.

"We did try to use another train to rescue the train involved, but when that proved impractical, we arranged for passengers to be transferred to another train, which pulled up alongside the broken-down train.

"They were taken to Shenfield, where they then were transferred to another train in order to complete their journey.

“A full in-depth investigation has already started into what happened and what we can do to prevent something similar happening again."

The broken engine also caused wider delays and congestion across Greater Anglia services travelling between the capital and Norwich.

Stricken passengers took to Twitter to voice their frustrations at the lengthy wait, complaining of no heating, no water, and lack of information.

An earlier train sent to rescue passengers supposedly also failed.

One passenger remarked on the unreliability of the new trains.

Another passenger worried whether ventilation systems were working.

Promises of replacement trains and refreshments didn't materialise according to one passenger.

One woman said that her husband had still not arrived home in Norwich eight hours after the train initially departed from London.

Anyone affected by the delays can claim delay repay at www.greateranglia.co.uk/delayrepay.