A local storm on Wednesday caused a major disruption in high-speed train traffic connecting Paris to the southeast of the country and Switzerland, affecting thousands of travelers amidst the ongoing Olympics and summer vacation departures. The SNCF, France's rail company, announced that all fast trains departing from and arriving at the Gare de Lyon train station in Paris were halted due to a fallen tree on the tracks in Burgundy, southeast of the capital. Regular-speed trains, operating on separate tracks, remained unaffected by the incident.
Authorities took swift action by cutting off power to the affected track and initiating a logging operation to clear the fallen tree. However, the SNCF indicated that the situation might not be resolved promptly. Passengers on the affected line were being redirected to nearby stations to explore alternative travel options.
This disruption follows a recent episode of severe train disruptions in France due to acts of sabotage leading up to the Olympic Games opening ceremony. While high-speed train services had been fully restored earlier in the week, this latest incident has once again impacted rail travel in the region.
The national weather agency, Meteo France, issued warnings of 'locally strong' thunderstorms with heavy rains and strong winds across most French regions on Wednesday. The storm alert was categorized as moderate in the Paris region and elevated in central and southeastern France.
Furthermore, most parts of France were under heat warnings for the third consecutive day, with temperatures in Paris reaching 31 degrees Celsius (88 degrees Fahrenheit). Meteo France advised residents to take precautions to stay safe amid the challenging weather conditions.
