Two dead, nine injured in France train derailment

Two people were killed and a further nine were injured when a boulder the size of a car hit a tourist train in the southern French Alps, local officials say.

The incident occurred while the train was travelling from Nice to the town of Digne-les-Bains on a line which crosses gorges and viaducts at up to 1,000m above sea level.

A total of 34 people were on board the train at the time of the derailment.

Local prosecutor Stephane Kellenberger said one of the dead was a Russian woman, while the other victim came from the Alps region.

One of the injured is said to be in a critical condition, while the others, including the driver, only suffered minor injuries.

Images showed one side of the two-carriage train caved in by the rock.

"A rock the size of a car rolled down the mountainside and slammed into the first car of the train,'' Jean Ballester, mayor of nearby Annot, said.

The agency adds that a total of 110 firefighters and 32 vehicles were deployed from around the region, as well as two helicopters.

The rescue efforts were hampered because of heavy snow and the isolated location.

The train travels on track that regularly receives snow and rockfalls, but regional transport official Jean-Yves Petit said that even in winter it is considered safe.