At least 11 people were injured, two of them seriously, when a train was derailed in East Sussex.
Police declared a major incident after three carriages derailed and toppled onto their sides, leaving a number of people trapped inside in scorching temperatures.
The accident, at 3.44pm on Thursday, involved a Southern Railway train travelling from London Victoria to Eastbourne with around 150 people on board. The carriages derailed near Lewes station.
open image in galleryA passenger in one of the carriages said the experience was “completely terrifying”.
“There was a banging. Everything just went topsy-turvy,” said 56-year-old Yana Ludwig, from the United States.
“It seemed like a really long time but it probably was 10 seconds of that before the carriage actually fell on the side.”
She described being propped up over the top of another passenger, and added: “I’m pretty banged up.”
Another passenger told how the carriage “jumped vertically upwards” as it derailed.
open image in gallery“We felt the train speeding up and starting to rock, and at that point we knew something was very strange, and then our carriage actually jumped vertically upwards, and we could tell there was a derailment,” he told the BBC.
Another passenger said he saw people who were injured.
“There were a number of people in ambulances that had had bad head injuries, and there was visible signs of blood on their heads and, you know, down their clothing,” he said.
Ambulance crews, air ambulances, critical care paramedics, fire crews and police all rushed to the scene.
The people who were trapped were later rescued, British Transport Police said.
open image in galleryMs Ludwig estimated it was 20 minutes before the emergency services arrived, adding it seemed like a difficult place for them to reach.
She said everyone on the train was checking their fellow passengers were OK, adding: “These moments everybody kind of pulls together.”
The Rail Accident Investigation Branch sent inspectors to investigate what happened.
But photographs appeared to show the tracks had bent, possibly buckled.
Railway engineer Gareth Dennis told The Independent: “The damage here is as likely to be caused by the train as it derailed down the embankment, so very difficult to confirm a buckle with the available evidence.”
Residents of homes near the scene took chairs to a community hub for casualties to sit on.
One resident, Oriana Evans, who with her son helped casualties to the community centre at Lewes, said some of them seemed in shock and told her they were alright but “really bruised”.
open image in gallery“They were in the carriages that rolled over,” she said.
Some of the casualties were on holiday, Ms Evans said.
Transport secretary Heidi Alexander said she was deeply concerned and was “working quickly with the rail industry and local partners to assist passengers”.
Eastbourne MP Josh Babarinde, who said one constituent had suffered rib injuries, wrote on social media: “Once this immediate emergency is over, there are some serious questions that must be answered about how this happened, how this situation will be mitigated against from happening again, and how those on board will be compensated for what they have suffered.”
British Transport Police said it was believed that two patients suffered serious injuries and a further nine had less serious injuries.
“Patients have been assessed and treated at the scene, with some transported to local hospitals,” the force added.
South East Coast Ambulance Service said a number of passengers who did not need hospital treatment were being cared for at a local community centre.
“This remains a complex and ongoing multi-agency response,” a spokesperson said.
Most trains between Brighton, Lewes and Eastbourne or Seaford were cancelled.