LONDON (AP) — A collision between two passenger trains in central England turned deadly Friday afternoon, killing the driver of one locomotive and leaving nine people in critical condition, according to police.
British Transport Police Chief Constable Lucy D’Orsi reported that more than 80 people required hospital treatment following the crash. By Saturday, 28 of those victims were still receiving hospital care.
The crash drew a response from the royal family, with Buckingham Palace releasing a statement saying King Charles III “is greatly saddened” by the incident. The palace added that “his thoughts and sympathies are with the family of the deceased and with all those injured or affected by such a tragic incident.”
Investigators are now working to determine why a commuter train heading toward London’s St. Pancras Station rear-ended another train traveling to the same destination on Friday afternoon.
Images and footage shared on social media captured dozens of passengers — some bandaged and others appearing unharmed — gathered near emergency vehicles lined up alongside the train tracks.
Passenger Peter Knapp described being violently thrown forward by the force of the impact, then witnessing fellow riders suffering broken bones and serious bleeding.
“People were crying, screaming. People were so scared and confused,” Knapp said. “I got up and I saw a lot of people who were unable to speak, had broken legs.”
A second passenger, Brett Byatt, spoke with the BBC about the severity of the scene inside his train car. “Only three to four of us were uninjured in a full carriage,” he said. “Everyone else had either a serious wound that was bleeding profusely, or a situation where they couldn’t stand, or couldn’t move their neck, or I saw a woman’s snapped leg.”
Britain’s rail network has long been considered among the safest in the world. The country’s last fatal multi-train crash prior to this one occurred in Wales in October 2024 — itself the first such deadly collision in more than 25 years.
