Sabotage Suspected in French Train Crash

A 250–300kg rail section was found on the track after a train derailed near Rouen, injuring 44 passengers.

French investigators are treating possible sabotage as the main line of inquiry after a train derailment in northwestern France injured 44 people, including a woman who was initially in critical condition.

The train, carrying 186 passengers, was travelling from Rouen to Caen when it derailed at around 7:45pm on Friday near Renault’s factory in the town of Cléon. One carriage overturned while four others came off the tracks.

Investigators discovered a large section of rail on the track, estimated to weigh between 250 and 300 kilograms. Prosecutor Sebastien Gallois said investigators were working to determine how and why the rail fragment came to be on the track.

Normandy regional president Herve Morin said the circumstances pointed to a possible criminal act, noting that another train had passed through the area about an hour earlier and no maintenance work had been carried out.

The maximum permitted speed on the section was 120 kilometres per hour. Tests on the train driver for alcohol and drugs were negative.

Authorities activated a mass-casualty response, sending 130 firefighters, five medical teams and 80 vehicles to the scene.

Gallois said 44 people were injured. An 18-year-old woman was taken to hospital in critical condition but was no longer considered to be in life-threatening condition on Saturday.

Railway personnel and investigators continued working at the site as the investigation proceeded.