Human error is not to blame for the train derailment that killed six people outside Paris on Friday evening, according to the French transport minister.
The commuter train jumped the track just a few miles into its journey from the French capital as it travelled through a small town train station. It crashed into the platform and some cars tipped over. Nearly 200 people were injured in the initial crash. By Saturday morning, Frederic Cuviller, the transport minister, said only 30 people were still considered injured.
Michel Fuzeau, who is the head of local regional government, said that until
an overturned train car is lifted, it was impossible to know if there could
be more people trapped under it, calling the current death toll preliminary.
"This is only a hypothesis and we hope it's not (the case)," he told
reporters.
He said special equipment was expected to arrive later in order to remove the
cars. He added that around nine of the injured were in critical condition.
People watch from a buiding after a train derailed at the Bretigny sur Orge train station, south of Paris, after a train derailed
France has an impressive rail system, and hundreds of thousands of people were
expected to take trains this weekend for the coast, mountains and to see
family. Summer weekends are always busy on France's trains, but this weekend
is one of the busiest since the country celebrates Bastille Day on Sunday.
The Friday night crash was the country's deadliest in years, but Mr Cuvillier
said it could have been worse and praised the driver who sent out an alert
quickly, preventing a pile up.
He said it was unclear what did cause the accident, but authorities are
looking into a possible error in the switching system, which guides trains
from one track to another.
Part of a train that derailed is seen, in Bretigny sur Orge, south of
Paris
Mr Cuvillier also acknowledged that there was some criticism that France has
not invested enough in maintaining infrastructure.
"But for the moment we have no information that allows us to confirm that
the dilapidation of the network was the cause of this derailment," he
said on French television. He added that investigators were exploring
several possibilities.
The train derailed at Bretigny-sur-Orge, about 12 miles into its 250-mile
journey to Limoges.