In Brétigny-sur-Orge, the inhabitants are still marked by the train disaster

Caroline Baudry, edited by Thibault Nadal 06:14, April 25, 2022

REPORT

The trial of one of the worst rail disasters opens on Monday.

Nine years ago, on July 12, 2013, a Paris-Limoges intercity train derailed at Brétigny-sur-Orge station.

Two cars lie down, a third sweeps the platform on which many travelers are waiting.

The toll is heavy: seven dead and 400 injured in this station in the Paris region, still marked by tragedy. 

Residents still traumatized

Place de la gare, Murielle raises her nose.

She shows her building which overlooks the completely renovated rails.

Almost 9 years after the shock, she nevertheless dwells on a deafening noise.

"It shook the tiles. You think about it, because it could have been my daughter. But that day, she didn't work. They called her, finally saying we don't need you. She could have been in it," she said.

Like Murielle, all the inhabitants remember precisely this summer Friday at 5:11 p.m.

Olivia, black sweatshirt and serious face, sees the emergency services invading her street.

"It was the scene of despair, helicopters, ambulances everywhere, firefighters everywhere. It's the emotions (his voice quivers). Life resumes its course, but we won't forget. Not here anyway, she explains."

"It was our 9/11"

At the entrance to the station, a discreet marble plaque affixed to the wall pays tribute to the victims.

A ceremony takes place every year.

Steevy was deputy mayor at the time.

He is now demanding the truth.

"It was our September 11. Really. So we need explanations, to find those responsible! The SNCF, for me, is guilty. For the victims, the families of victims, their world has stopped!"

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Nine years later, Steevy says he has a sad reflex: to take refuge on the stairs, when a train passes at high speed very close to the platform.