Eight people injured as train crashes into fallen tree in France

Eight people were seriously hurt yesterday when a regional express train crashed into a fallen tree uprooted by a massive hailstorm in southern France.

The regional express was carrying 219 passengers on a service between Nimes and Montpellier when it hit the tree at 140km/h, said the state rail operator SNCF.

The incident occurred near the town of Lunel, 28km south-west of Nimes.