Passengers stranded for over 24 hours as storm disrupts Oslo-Gothenburg train route

A family travelling from Gothenburg to Oslo spent more than a day stranded after extreme weather caused repeated disruptions on the cross-border train route, Norwegian news outlet Dagbladet reports.

Erik Sørdal Landsem, travelling with his two teenage children and elderly parents, told the newspaper the journey—normally a four-hour trip—turned into an ordeal lasting over 24 hours. “We’re closer to getting home now than we’ve been in a day,” he said Monday evening, expecting to arrive around 9 p.m.

The delays began Sunday afternoon when a tree fell onto the tracks between Ed and Öxnered in Sweden, damaging a train car and halting traffic. After a replacement car was attached, a second tree blocked the line, leaving passengers without power, food, or water for hours. Some resorted to using buckets as makeshift toilets.

“It was dark, the train had no electricity, and people were hungry and frustrated,” Landsem said. Despite the hardship, he noted that both adults and children remained patient. His parents, set to drive to Trøndelag the next day, were left exhausted by the lack of sleep and proper meals.

Communication from train operator Vy was sparse, Landsem added, particularly for non-Norwegian speakers. He assisted an English family who struggled to understand announcements in Norwegian. Passengers were eventually told to book their own hotels, with promises of reimbursement, though some lacked the means to do so.

Further confusion arose Monday when the family missed their scheduled 12 p.m. bus and had to wait for a later departure. Landsem called for better crisis communication, especially when large groups require simultaneous updates.

Vy spokesperson Siv Egger Westin acknowledged the failures, citing extreme winds that also prevented buses from operating. She admitted information may have been insufficient but noted the challenge of providing real-time updates in unpredictable situations. While Norwegian is Vy’s primary language for announcements, she said the company would review the incident and urged affected passengers to seek compensation.

Despite the chaos, Landsem described the experience as memorable due to the solidarity among passengers, who shared food and kept children entertained. “We could have gotten angry, but we chose to handle it differently,” he said.