A train carrying 186 passengers derailed on Friday between the Normandy cities of Rouen and Caen in northwestern France. Many people were left deeply shaken, officials reported.
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According to prosecutors, a rail part found on the tracks may have caused the accident.
The president of the Normandy region, Herve Morin, said that the rail fragment found on the tracks weighed about 300 kilograms.
Police sources and politicians, including H. Morin and the mayor of Nice, Eric Ciotti, raised the possibility of malicious intent.
Officials tried to downplay these assumptions.
“We must remain extremely cautious,” Interior Minister Laurent Nunez told broadcaster France 2 on Sunday, adding that law enforcement is investigating all versions and “none of them is being prioritized.”
L. Nunez noted that if the train derailment turned out to be a “malicious act, it would be very serious.”
Asked about the possible role of far-left groups, L. Nunez said that such a scenario does not match their usual methods.
“They usually target alarm equipment,” he said, adding that “they tend to avoid casualties.”
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A railway sector source told the AFP news agency on Sunday that questions still remain about the rail part, which he said weighed about 300–350 kilograms, being on the tracks.
The source indicated that “a train was traveling on the tracks in the same direction an hour earlier,” and “half an hour earlier – a train in the opposite direction.”
“The driver of that train noticed nothing, although train crews are instructed to observe and report any unusual occurrences,” the source said, adding that no maintenance work was being carried out at the time.
“Preliminary data shows that whoever did this followed the train schedule to avoid detection. Moving that rail fragment required several people,” the source said.
Prosecutor Sebastien Gallois said on Saturday that it is still unclear why the rail fragment ended up on the tracks.
This incident, which has already prompted a judicial investigation, also led to the start of a technical investigation, Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot reported.
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