Train crash near Paris kills six, many more injured
At least six people die in a train derailment outside Paris, the French interior minister says, as passengers tell French media “the train was travelling unusually fast”.
The train derailed en route from Paris to the central city of Limoges, Interior Minister Manuel Valls said.
“The death toll is evolving constantly at this point and unfortunately it will probably rise,” Valls revealed.
Passengers who spoke to French media from the scene said the train was travelling unusually fast as it approached the station.
Pictures: tgorguet/Instagram
The SNCF national rail authority says the train was carrying around 385 passengers when it derailed and crashed into the station at Bretigny-sur-Orge, some 20 kilometers (12 miles) south of Paris.
SNCF official Jean-Paul Boulet says four carriages piled up after the train derailed. He could not confirm reports that passengers were still trapped inside.
A passenger speaking on France’s BFM television said the train was going at a normal speed and was not meant to stop at Bretigny-sur-Orge.
He described children unattended in the chaotic aftermath. He said there are swarms of emergency workers at the scene.
Two train cars, cars number 3 and 4, initially derailed, then knocked the other cars off the track, SNCF chief Guillaume Pepy said.
“Some cars simply derailed, others are leaning, others fell over,” he said.
The accident comes as France is preparing to celebrate its most important national holiday, Bastille Day, on Sunday.