“Ultimately, it is impossible to completely secure an entire country,” said Jeremy Jean.
The French rail network, which was hit by sabotage last week, is expected to be fully operational again by the beginning of the week. Transport Minister Patrice Vergriete assured the press that normal timetables will resume on Monday. This disruption comes at a crucial time, just before the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Paris.
Train traffic on the eastern high-speed line resumed on Saturday morning. However, travelers on the TGV's north, west and south-west lines had to expect delays of one to two hours. The national railway company SNCF reported that on average seven in ten trains were delayed. SNCF technicians worked all night in the rain to restore TGV services.
Authorities continued to hold on to the planned opening ceremony of the Olympic Games despite what they described as a large-scale, coordinated attack on the country's high-speed infrastructure. Vergriete stressed that the majority of the 800.000 affected travelers were holidaymakers and that the attacks had no impact on the Games.
Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin stated that the investigation into the attack is ongoing and making some progress. No group has yet claimed responsibility. “We have collected a number of elements that make us believe that we can quickly find out who is responsible. It is clear that not the Olympic Games, but the holidays of the French have been sabotaged,” he told TV station TF1. “Who is responsible for this remains unclear for the time being; it can be either a domestic or foreign source.”
At a press conference, SNCF president Jean-Pierre Farandou said his company is in “full preparedness.” Security has been further tightened with drones and additional staff deployed across the entire network. Farandou added that it is impossible to fully monitor all tens of thousands of kilometers of railways.
On Saturday afternoon, Gare Montparnasse, the worst-hit station in Paris, was full of travelers unable to catch their trains. Vacationers with large suitcases filled the halls and stairways as they waited for updates. Claire Lorbert, a 37-year-old digital consultant, was due to leave for Les Sables d'Olonne on the Atlantic coast yesterday to pick up her children. She now hopes to leave later today and has postponed her return journey as a precaution to avoid further disruption. “To be honest, I expected worse,” she said Bloomberg, adding that the dozens of SNCF employees on hand to assist travelers reduced the confusion.
Jeremy Jean, a 38-year-old entrepreneur, and his wife were also waiting for a train to St. Malo on the west coast of France. “Ultimately, it is impossible to fully secure an entire country,” he said.
