An off duty Sussex Police officer helped rescue hundreds of passengers trapped on a Eurostar train in the Channel Tunnel.

PC Caroline Lowe was on her way back from Disneyland Paris when the power failed, stranding 2,000 travellers in the tunnel.

Miss Lowe was with her partner, Sergeant Anton Menzies of the Metropolitan Police, and helped other off duty officers to reassure passengers during their six hour ordeal.

She used her training as an emergency planning officer based at Gatwick to deal with the crisis.

The train broke down after a complete power failure in the tunnel caused by the freezing weather conditions.

She helped evacuate the stranded train once a replacement arrived to ferry the trapped passengers to safety.

Chief Superintendent Paul Morrison, of Sussex Police, said: “Not often when we set off on holiday do we think we will also have to do our day job.

“Caroline and the others acted very bravely in a strange environment to get people to safety.”