Two Squirrel Travellers Refuse To Leave, Train Gets cancelled In UK

A Great Western Railway (GWR) train to Gatwick Airport was cancelled on Saturday after two squirrels caused havoc by boarding the service and refusing to leave, according to the BBC. Passengers were forced to relocate after the animals, described as "frightened and erratic," entered the rear carriage.The squirrels boarded the 08:54 BST service from Reading to Gatwick, and it is believed they became distressed in the confined space. Passengers quickly moved to another part of the train, and the carriage was locked by the train manager.A Network Rail employee attempted to remove the squirrels at Redhill station in Surrey, but one of the animals refused to disembark, forcing GWR to terminate the service. The stubborn squirrel was eventually returned to Reading, ending the unusual episode.A GWR spokesperson humorously noted the incident, saying, "We can confirm that the 08:54 Reading to Gatwick service was terminated at Redhill after a pair of squirrels boarded at Gomshall without tickets, violating railway bye-laws. We tried to remove them at Redhill, but one refused to disembark and was returned to Reading, bringing an end to this nutty tale."The UK is home to an estimated 2.7 million grey squirrels, and their population is growing, according to the Woodland Trust.In a similar event last December, a hedgehog was found hiding under a train seat between Weybridge and London Waterloo. The hedgehog, later named Hector, was adopted by a rail worker and his family.