French police suspect Normandy train derailment was result of sabotage

Investigators suspect that a train derailment in northwest France which injured 44, one gravely, was the result of sabotage, a police source told AFP on Saturday.

A fragment of rail was found on the track, with the possibility of a malicious act being treated as the main line of inquiry as a result, the source said.

Read moreOne dead and dozens injured in train collision north of London

Carrying 186 passengers, the train was running between the Normandy cities of Rouen and Caen when it derailed around 7:45pm (17:45 GMT) Friday.

Authorities activated a mass-casualty response plan, with 130 firefighters, five medical teams and 80 vehicles drafted in.

Rouen prosecutor Sebastien Gallois said 44 people were injured, including an 18-year-old woman evacuated "in a critical condition", while tests for drugs and alcohol on the train driver had come back negative. 

SNCF Réseau, which controls the French rail network, told AFP that traffic on the line has been suspended and power to the tracks cut to allow emergency services to operate.