High-Speed Train Derails Outside London; 4 Killed

A high-speed train carrying more than 100 passengers derailed north of London on Tuesday, killing four people and injuring 34.

Police launched a criminal investigation but ruled out the possibility of a terrorist bomb.

The train had been heading from London’s King’s Cross station to Leeds, in northern England, when it came off the rails near Hatfield, 18 miles north of London.

Police said bomb threats had been made Sunday to part of the rail line north of London, and bomb squad and police anti-terrorist officers were called to the scene in the hours before a terror attack was ruled out.

Great North Eastern Railway, the train’s operator, said the cause of the disaster was not immediately known. There were no reports of the train striking anything.

The train derailed while traveling about 115 mph. Seven of its nine passenger cars left the track, and at least three overturned.

British Transport Police said 100 to 150 passengers were on the train, which could have carried up to 600.

The buffet car was one of the carriages believed to be on its side, said Railtrack, the private company that operates Britain’s rail network. Justin Rowlatt, a reporter with Channel Four News who was on the train, described the damage as “severe.”

Several passengers reported hearing a loud bang before the train jolted from the tracks.

“It was the most horrendous noise I have ever heard,” said Dianne Hudson, 47.