France: derailed high speed train on test kills 7

Seven persons have died  after a French high-speed train derailed during a test run Saturday.

According to the AFP, the train accident happened “because of excessive speed” at Eckwersheim in eastern France as technicians were on board for testing, said a top local official Dominique-Nicolas Jane.

However, police said the cause of the crash had not been determined. A source close to the investigation said dozens of technicians were aboard.

The train ended up near a bridge in the water of a roughly 40-metre (130-foot) wide canal.

A police dive team, helicopters and tens of rescue vehicles were sent to the scene in response to the crash.

The accident happened on a day France began to mourn the death of close to 128 people killed Friday night by terrorists from the Islamic State of Syria.