Police will establish ‘exactly what happened’ after two seriously injured in train derailment near Lewes

Some 20 people were injured in the incident, which happened on the afternoon of Thursday, August 13.

The British Transport Police Superintendent said in a statement on Thursday evening: “This afternoon at around 3.45pm we received a report of a train derailment near Lewes station in Sussex.

“A major incident was declared after three carriages of a Southern service travelling from London Victoria to Eastbourne derailed. A number of passengers were initially trapped but thankfully were soon safely evacuated from the train.

“At this stage we know two people have sustained serious injuries and a further 18 have suffered less serious injuries. Those injured were assessed and treated at the scene with some taken to local hospitals for further treatment.

“A significant emergency response has taken place throughout the evening involving officers from the British Transport Police, alongside colleagues from Sussex Police, the fire and rescue service, ambulance service and Network Rail.

“First and foremost, our thoughts are with everyone affected by this incident. I’d also like to recognise our officers and emergency service colleagues for working incredibly hard this evening in particularly challenging temperatures.

“I’d also like to thank the local community, shopkeepers and the community centre whose kindness in supporting the emergency services’ response and passengers have been felt incredibly strongly. We’ll be working closely with the Rail Accident Investigation Branch to establish exactly what happened this evening and will provide further updates when we can.”

South East Coast Ambulance Service (SECAmb) said earlier in the evening that the train had about 150 people on board during the incident.

Rail chief says sorry

Lucy McAuliffe said: “I can only apologise to everyone who has been impacted by this incident. But I must also thank the local community and the response teams for everything they have done to support the response to this situation.”

Line closure to continue

Lucy McCauliffe, Sussex route director for Network Rail, added that the line between Lewes and Haywards Heath remained closed and was likely to remain so as specialist teams carried out the complex task of ‘assessing the damage to the train and the infrastructure’.

‘Shocked and saddened’

Lucy McAuliffe also said her immediate thoughts were with the injured, family and friends and all those affected by the incident.

‘Incident was complex and challenging to deal with’

Michael Bradfield deputy chief paramedic officer at South East Coast Ambulance Service said a ‘carefully co-ordinated, multi-agency response’ was carried out by emergency services at the scene.