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TGV derailed Paris - Strasburg (test train not in passenger service)

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Zoidberg

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Pictures look horrendous with the leading coaches ending up in the river

1

My device cannot open the attachment.

Have you a link to reports of the incident, please?

EDIT: Thanks Jordeh.

And from the ITV website at

http://www.itv.com/news/update/2015-11-14/train-comes-off-tracks-near-french-german-border/

14 November 2015 at 3:11pm

Train 'comes off tracks' near French-German border

A train has come off its tracks near the French-German border town of Eckwersheim, according to local media.

A picture posted to Twitter appeared to show the TGV partly submerged in water, while a video posted to the social network appeared to show parts of the train in flames.

ITV News was unable to independently verify the claims.

...

According to local publisher Dernieres Nouvelles D'Alsace, the TGV was a test train, meaning it may not have been carrying passengers.

The train operator has yet to make a statement following the reports.

Last updated Sat 14 Nov 2015
 
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deltic

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ainsworth74

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I have removed the attachment as it's just the picture from the twitter feed (the link to which I've fixed) in a word document.
 

Zoidberg

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LNW-GW Joint

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No passengers on the train as it is a test train thankfully.
http://www.lalsace.fr/actualite/2015/11/14/un-train-deraille-a-eckwersheim

Seems to be near the point where the new section of LGV Est meets the classic line at Eckwersheim, north of Strasbourg.
The waterway is the Canal de la Marne au Rhin, and the LGV splits into two single tracks over it before a flying junction with the classic line.
Presumably the route and signalling are under test prior to opening in April.
A nasty coincidence given the events last night in Paris.
It's bound to make people even more nervous.
Google maps shows the LGV route during construction, with the canal bridges missing.
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=en&lat=48.686371&lon=7.707510&z=14&m=b&search=eckwersheim

Edit: These appear to be the first TGV fatalities on a high-speed line (though we don't know how fast the train was travelling).
All previous fatalities involved collisions on classic lines at lower speeds.
 
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DasLunatic

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Wow. Murphy's Law is in full swing for the French. RIP to all caught up in this (comparatively small) tragedy.
 

Zoidberg

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BBC News channel saying 5 dead ....

An article on the BBC website now, at:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-34822666

No doubt it will be updated as more information becomes available.

A high-speed TGV train has derailed near the eastern French city of Strasbourg, killing five people and injuring seven, local media report.

The crash happened during a test run in the town of Eckwersheim, on a new Paris-Strasbourg line. Reports say technicians were on board the train.

The injured have been taken to hospital by helicopters.

The AFP news agency is quoting sources as saying the derailment happened due to "excessive speed".

Pictures later showed the locomotive partly submerged in a canal alongside the tracks. Wreckage was also scattered in a field beside the track.

Rescue teams - including divers - are working at the scene.

Reports say the Paris-Strasbourg high-speed line is scheduled to open next year.
 

LNW-GW Joint

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Already reporting the accident was caused by "excessive speed".
http://www.dna.fr/actualite/2015/11...et-prend-feu-a-eckwersheim-pres-de-strasbourg
Cette rame d’essai qui, selon la SNCF, circulait avec des techniciens à bord, aurait «déraillé en raison d’une vitesse excessive», a précisé Dominique-Nicolas Jane, directeur de cabinet du préfet d’Alsace
Not sure how the local police could know that already, especially as it was a test train/route.
The bridge appears to be intact, so it does not look like a bridge structural failure.
 
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WatcherZero

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7 injured in addition to the five fatalities.

Been a light aircraft crash in Somerset killing 4 today as well, and a man arrested at Gatwick with two handguns.

Very busy news day.
 

w0033944

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I too thought the "excessive speed" comment was unusual, though it was perhaps an attempt to alleviate fears and rumours of more terrorist activity after last night's events. R.I.P.
 

jopsuk

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I've seen reports that confirmed deaths now stands at 10. Apparently ~65 on board? How does this compare to the NMT staff complement?
 

Gordon

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.

This is the testing I wrote about just a few days ago in the thread 'TGV Est Services'.

Test running with instrument-filled TGV 744 double deck set has now started on phase 2. The set will run at up to 352km/h but the normal max line speed will be 320km/h
Commercial service planned to start on 3 April 2016
.


This a major setback for TGV technology, but is of course overtaken by the Paris events, so has not made headlines.

The reason is said to be 'excessive speed' but the latter was a key element of the test, hence my comment about a major setback.





.
 
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edwin_m

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The location appears to be the 90-degree curve at the end of the new TGV line onto the existing line into Strasbourg. Shades of the accident in Spain.

Indeed. I wonder if the signalling and train protection (ERTMS presumably) were active on the infrastructure and the train.
 

AlexNL

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Wouldn't it be TVM on a French high-speed line?

Newly built high speed lines in France are dual-signalled with ERTMS and TVM430. But given that testing at high speeds was needed, it's possible that the safety systems were disabled.

This incident reminds me a lot of the Santiago de Compostela crash back in 2013. :(
 

notadriver

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From what I have read, Phase 1 started with TVM but is now fitted with ERTMS.

Presumably Phase 2 is also ERTMS.

Other TVM lines are planned to migrate to ERTMS over time.


Is the ERTMS operational ? The TGV cab ride I saw was definitely TVM and I'm fairly familiar with it.
 

185

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I've seen reports that confirmed deaths now stands at 10. Apparently ~65 on board? How does this compare to the NMT staff complement?

Reading reports of invited guests / families of staff on board.

49 personnes personnes se trouvaient à bord de la rame d'essai, mais ce chiffre n'est pas certain. La rame transportait des personnels de la SNCF et des invités, de leurs familles. Il y avait parmi les passagers des enfants.

LGV Est - line soon to open, Sched 2016.
 

SpacePhoenix

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If ERTMS and TVM were both running at the same time, is there a possibility that one interfered with the other?
 
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