A French high-speed train crashed into a truck carrying military equipment in northern France on Tuesday, killing the driver of the TGV and badly injuring two people, officials said.
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The TGV train, which was travelling from the northern city of Dunkirk to Paris and carrying 243 people, collided with the vehicle at a level crossing in the town of Bully-les-Mines.
The impact was so strong that the military vehicle that was aboard the truck, and weighed several dozen tonnes, was sent flying around 10 metres, landing near a private garden.
The 56-year-old train driver, described by officials as an experienced professional, died instantly, said local prosecutor Etienne Thieffry.
The truck driver was in police custody on suspicion of manslaughter, prosecutors said. It was too early to say whether or not he forced his way through the level crossing.
Two people were badly injured, although their injuries are not life-threatening, Thieffry said. Fourteen others sustained less serious injuries.
‘Huge bang’
The civilian truck was transporting an obstacle crossing vehicle that had been used in military exercises in Belgium, a military source told French news agency AFP. The truck was due to be returned to the western town of Angers.
The collision occurred at 6.48am, when the train was travelling at an estimated speed of 160 kilometres per hour. The train continued for several hundred metres after the impact before coming to a halt on the tracks, regional prefect Francois-Xavier Lauch told reporters.
More than 80 firefighters and dozens of police and other technical crews have been deployed at the crash site, where personnel were seen inspecting the mangled nose of the train.
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“I was just waking up when I heard a huge bang”, said a witness to the crash, Pierre-Francois Dhoossche, 22.
He said he went straight to the scene and saw the truck driver “looking a bit shaken”, adding that the rear of the trailer had been struck by the train.
Laurent Poissant, the mayor of the nearby town of Mazingarbe, said the train had “fortunately” not been travelling at its maximum speed.
The chief executive of national rail operator SNCF, Jean Castex, said the level crossing was in order. Rail traffic will be suspended on the line for “at least a week”, he said.
‘Railway workers in shock’
Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot posted on social media platform X that he was heading to the scene with the head of the SNCF.
“Railway workers are in shock following this tragic accident,” the Sud-Rail trade union posted on X. “The SUD-Rail union is demanding complete transparency regarding this tragedy and a firm commitment from the authorities.”
Fabien Villedieu of the Sud-Rail union said it was “the second special convoy in a week to become stuck at a level crossing”.
On 25 March, a regional train collided with a truck at a level crossing in the southeastern town of Saint-Raphael, killing the 60-year-old truck driver.
In March 2025, two soldiers died after their vehicle was struck by a regional train at a level crossing near the northern town of Arras.
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In France, serious accidents involving high-speed rail lines are rare compared to those on traditional railways.
A high-speed train in November 2015 derailed after taking a corner much faster than the recommended speed during a test between Paris and the eastern city of Strasbourg, killing 11 people – the deadliest such accident involving a high-speed train in France.
On Christmas Eve 2024, a TGV driver took his own life by throwing himself out of the train while it was moving. An automated response brought the train to a halt and no one else was hurt.
(with AFP)
