Investigators suspect sabotage may have caused a train derailment in north-western France that injured 44 people, after a section of rail was found on the track.
The regional service was travelling from Rouen to Caen with 186 passengers when it came off the tracks in Cleon on Friday evening. One carriage overturned, while four others derailed.
An 18-year-old woman was among those injured and was flown by helicopter to Rouen University Hospital, police said.
A spokeswoman for France’s national police communications service, SICOP, said the rail section was “probably” connected to the derailment. She said investigators still had to establish why it was present.
Rouen prosecutor Sebastien Gallois said: “The reasons for its presence are unknown and will have to be determined by the investigation.”
Police said inquiries were under way to determine whether the incident was accidental or involved sabotage, stressing that prosecutors were cautious about drawing conclusions.
Melanie Delacour, the mayor of Cleon, said the injured passengers were “in a state of shock”.
She said the windows of carriages that remained upright had shattered, while stones were thrown into the train because of its speed.
