On Monday 26 July at around 11pm, a fire broke out along the tracks of the TER between Narbonne (Aude) and Nissan-lez-Enserune (Hérault), next to an electrical substation, destroying cables but also damaging the technical room.
The result? Since 11pm on Monday, “hundreds of trains have been affected”, says the SNCF, including the total halt of regional traffic all morning on Tuesday between Toulouse (Haute-Garonne) and Montpellier (Hérault). At the national level of TGV and Intercity trains, “trains departing from Paris for Perpignan (Pyrénées-Orientales) this Tuesday morning will either be cancelled or limited”, explains the SNCF, and journeys departing from Marseille (Bouches-du-Rhône) or Barcelona (Catalonia), initially via Montpellier and Toulouse, will also be affected.
An investigation has been opened to determine the accidental or criminal origin of the fire. Around twenty SNCF agents have been mobilised to repair the burnt wiring, and train traffic is expected to resume from 3pm on Tuesday.
[summary of the regional press and the SNCF website, 27 July 2021]
