Did you see what happened? Email patrick.harrington@dailymail.co.ukSee more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred SourceBy PATRICK HARRINGTON, UK NEWS REPORTER and KATHERINE LAWTON, SENIOR NEWS REPORTER Updated: 21:10 BST, 13 August 2026
Two people were seriously injured when a train carrying 150 people derailed in East Sussex this afternoon, with a fleet of air ambulances called in to evacuate wounded passengers.Witnesses described seeing passengers covered in blood and with head injuries, while a local MP said one of his constituents had suffered a broken rib. A total of nine people sustained less serious injuries.Meanwhile, families have told of their terror at being thrown around inside carriages that jolted upwards and crashed onto their sides.Disaster struck the eight-carriage train travelling from London Victoria to Eastbourne at 3:54pm today, when it was between Haywards Heath and Lewes stations.More than 40 people were believed to have been initially trapped inside the carriages, where they were stuck for around an hour and a half in sweltering heat.One section of the track appeared to have buckled - though there has been no official confirmation of the cause of the derailment. Three air ambulances took off at around 6pm, and these are understood to have carried the final passengers rescued from the train.Follow our live updates below. Key UpdatesExclusive:Passenger train came off 'buckling track in extreme heat' in Lewes, transport expert saysBy Lettice BromovskyWhile the cause of the derailment has not been confirmed, transport experts have raised the possibility that the exceptional heat contributed to the crash by causing the rails to buckle or the dry ground beneath them to collapse.Speaking to the Daily Mail transport expert Christian Wolmar said: 'Well, there are two possible reasons this has happened.'Obviously, the train track might have buckled before the train arrived. But because the first carriages didn't derail, it might be that the dryness from the heat has led to the embankment collapsing, and then the train made the rails buckle rather than the other way round.'I noticed yesterday when I was out on the heath for the eclipse. There's just great big fissures in Hampstead Heath, big openings like an earthquake, and that must be happening in many places.'So it could be that there's something like that that caused the embankment to partially collapse, and then the rails buckled under the weight of the train because the rails were unsupported. Which could be the more likely explanation given that the first four carriages didn't go down.'Read more about the theories on the cause of the derailment below.Everything we know so far...A Southern passenger train derailed close to Lewes railway station in East Sussex at around 3.54pm this afternoon.The three rear carriages came off the tracks and turned onto their sides, trapping around 40 people.Two people were seriously injured, while nine sustained less serious injuries.Emergency services descended onto the scene, stretchering off casualties and guiding passengers down the tracks.Southern has advised passengers not to travel through the area, with major disruption expected until around 10pm.The final passengers were rescued from the train and evacuated by a fleet of three air ambulances at around 6pm.Images appear to show a section of buckled track behind the overturned carriages - though there has been no official confirmation of the cause.Emergency services with a stretcher at the sceneLocal who helped people off the train speaks out Local resident Oriana Evans said she and her son helped casualties who were led off the train towards the community centre along the street, showing them where to go, including some passengers who were on holiday.'I walked and chatted to some of them in shock really,' the 54-year-old jewellery maker said.She said they told her they were alright but 'really bruised'.British Transport Police declares a major incidentBritish Transport Police (BTP) has declared a major incident following the derailment this afternoon.In a statment, BTP said: 'A major incident has been declared after three carriages of the train derailed onto their side, leaving a number of people trapped. They have now been safely evacuated. 'At this time we believe that two people have sustained serious injuries and a further nine patients have sustained less serious injuries. Patients have been assessed and treated at the scene, with some transported to local hospitals.''Officers are continuing to respond at the scene alongside colleagues from Sussex Police and the local Fire and Rescue and Ambulance Services.'Assistant Chief Constable Ian Drummond-Smith said: 'We've declared a major incident and a significant emergency service response is ongoing at the scene, but all passengers on the train have now been safely evacuated from the service.'Our thoughts are of course with everyone affected, and I’d like to reassure the public that we’re supporting the Rail Accident Investigation Branch to establish exactly what's happened. We’ll provide further information as soon as we are able.' View down an overturned carriage'Passenger has a broken rib' - Eastbourne MPJosh Babarinde, MP for Eastbourne, where the train was due to terminate, said he has been informed that one of his constituents suffered a broken rib in the derailment.In a social media post, Mr Babarinde described the incident as 'utterly shocking', and thanked the emergency services for their efforts.He wrote: 'I’m full of gratitude for our emergency services who have responded quickly and are pulling out every stop to ensure that passengers and staff who were on the train are taken to safety as soon as possible - thank you to them," he wrote.'This is clearly distressing for those passengers and staff on board, even if they didn’t sustain physical injuries, and I have made representations for the appropriate mental health support to be made available to affected passengers and staff without delay.'He added that there would be serious questions to answer about how the accident unfolded, but called for unity in the immediate aftermath.'It was pandemonium'Passengers Rob Bradley, who was travelling with his six-year-old daughter Mabel, described scenes onboard as 'pandemonium'.Mr Bradley told BBC News: 'It was quite pandemonium for a while. There's hundreds of police, fire and ambulance crews and everything.'He said that passengers were trapped onboard for 'about an hour and a half' after the accident.Mr Bradley said it was 'incredibly hot' because the air conditioning had stopped working, and the windows and doors remained closed.Full statement from South East Coast Ambulance ServiceSouth East Coast Ambulance Service has said there were about 150 people on board the train when it derailed near Lewes.A spokesperson said: 'We can confirm that two patients have sustained serious injuries and a further nine patients have sustained less serious injuries.'Patients have been assessed and treated at the scene, with some transported to local hospitals for further treatment and care.'A number of passengers who did not require hospital treatment have been taken to a local community centre, where they are being supported by partner agencies.'It added that it continues to respond to the major incident alongside other emergency services and urged people to avoid the area.South East Coast Ambulance has confirmed that 'two people sustained serious injuries'.Map shows location of the accidentThe train from London Victoria to Eastbourne derailed when it was between Haywards Heath and Lewes stations.
