What happened on the South-East high-speed axis on Christmas Eve? While dozens of trains were delayed due to a “personal accident”, the prosecution announced this Wednesday, December 25 that a “possible act of suicide” of a train driver would be the cause of the disruptions.
An automatic train stop
“The first findings seem to suggest an act of suicide by the driver of a TGV train”indicated the Melun public prosecutor’s office (Seine-et-Marne)AFP. “Automatic rail safety procedures ensured the train stopped,” added the prosecution.
According to Franceinfo et The Parisian the TGV which was transporting 400 people stopped near Crisenoy in Seine-et-Marne early in the evening. The driver of a train apparently jumped while the train was moving in the early evening, reports a source close to the investigation atAFP. Police and firefighters responded to the scene and found the victim's body a little later.
A judicial investigation was opened to investigate the causes of death and entrusted to the Melun gendarmerie company, the prosecution said.
Read also: In Morbihan, a woman dies after being hit by a train on Christmas Eve
SNCF confirms suicide
The SNCF, which initially did not confirm the hypothesis of the suicide of its employee due to an internal investigation still in progress, finally confirmed it at midday. The driver “ended his life while the train was moving”, the company announced. “The safety of train passengers was not threatened at any time, nor was the safety of traffic, the traffic management center having been immediately automatically alerted,” the railway company said again.
The SNCF mentioned a « terrible drame » which plunges into the ” grief “ the whole family is on the railway this Christmas Day.
Train traffic, some of which were delayed up to 5 hours, gradually resumed this Wednesday morning. “Some delays are still to be expected”however warned the SNCF. Just over 3,000 people were affected by these delays in the middle of Christmas Eve.
