“Massive attack” on the Paris railway network: fires and 800,000 passengers affected

Digital Diary

Paris.-All eyes are on Paris this Friday for the opening of the 2024 Olympic Games.

However, the day got off to a bad start in the French capital. The SNCF, the national railway company, reported early in the morning that a “massive attack” was taking place that was trying to paralyse its high-speed train network (TGV): it is affecting three of the four lines in Paris and affecting 800,000 passengers.

Specifically, the affected connections are those between Paris and the West, the North and the East, while the attack on the South-East line has been “thwarted”.

For the moment, there is no link between this act and the opening of the Olympic Games, the ceremony of which is taking place this evening. “Last night, coordinated malicious acts took place, affecting several TGV lines and which will seriously disrupt traffic until this weekend. I strongly condemn these criminal actions, which will affect the holiday trips of many French people,” said Transport Minister Patrice Vergriete.

SNCF teams are already working to carry out a diagnosis and begin repairs. But it will not be quick. “This situation should last at least the whole weekend while repairs are carried out,” said the French operator, which hopes that normality will be restored by Monday. “All customers will be informed by SMS of the running of their trains,” SNCF assured Agence France-Presse. The operator advises “all passengers to postpone their journey and not go to the station.” Those affected can request a refund of their tickets.

“All the elements we have clearly show that it was deliberate: the coincidence of times, vans found with people fleeing, especially in the south-east part, incendiary devices found at the site. Everything indicates that these are arson attacks,” Vergriete said at a press conference. According to Jean-Pierre Farandou, director general of SNCF, the perpetrators of these acts set fire to “gutters through which numerous fibre optic cables pass” that transmit “safety information for drivers” or that control “switching motors”.

One of the acts of vandalism occurred near Courtalain (Eure-et-Loir) and disrupted traffic. SNCF is expecting delays of between half an hour and an hour and ten hours on TGV, Intercités and Ouigo trains. “We are diverting some trains from conventional lines but we will have to cancel a large number of them,” the railway company said in a statement.

Traffic is also disrupted on the high-speed line between Lille and Paris. It was cut off at 5:15 a.m. after a “malicious act in the Arras sector.” Finally, on the line between Paris and the East, there was another act of vandalism “near Pagny-sur-Moselle,” which seriously affected traffic. In this case, delays of up to 45 minutes are expected. Trains to Reims and Châlons-en-Champagne “are not affected,” SNCF said.

Meanwhile, all Eurostar trains departing and arriving at Gare du Nord (Paris) have also been affected and are experiencing delays of one hour. The company is recommending that users postpone their journey.

In particular, several trains connecting Paris to London on Friday have been cancelled due to the massive attack, Eurostar announced. “All high-speed trains to and from Paris are being diverted onto the classic line today, Friday 26 July,” Eurostar reported on its website. The speed of traffic will therefore be reduced and the journey time will be extended by around an hour and a half.

The connection between Paris and Brussels is also affected, Agence France-Presse reported. Eurostar has assured that its staff is “fully mobilised in stations, in call centres and on board” to ensure that passengers are well informed, specifying that customers can “cancel” or “modify” their ticket at no additional cost.Infobae.