A regional train carrying 186 passengers derailed on Friday evening around 7:54 p.m. between the Normandy cities of Rouen and Caen in northwest France. The incident occurred in Cleon, prompting an emergency response that involved 130 firefighters and five medical teams.
Forty-four people were injured in the accident. Among the victims, an 18-year-old woman was evacuated in critical condition.
Investigators are now treating the possibility of a malicious act as the main line of inquiry. Police suspect sabotage caused the derailment after a fragment of rail, described as an unidentified object, was discovered on the tracks.