Polish Intercity train derails after striking truck near Sokolniki Suche, injuring four

Collision at Sokolniki Suche

An Intercity passenger train collided with a truck on a railway crossing in central Poland on Wednesday morning, causing the locomotive and the first carriage to derail. The incident involved the IC 2820/1 Koziołek passenger train, which was travelling along railway line number 22 on its route from Lublin Główny to Szczecin Główny. The collision took place near the village of Sokolniki Suche, located in the Wieniawa municipality between Wolanów and Przysucha in the Masovian Voivodeship. Emergency dispatchers received the first notification of the disaster at approximately 11:20, with the crash occurring around 11:25. The impact threw the locomotive onto the opposite track and detached the leading passenger carriage from the rails.

Casualties and emergency response

Initial reports on the number of passengers aboard varied between 95 and approximately 150 people. Medical responders at the scene classified four individuals with severe injuries under the red triage category. Emergency personnel initiated cardiopulmonary resuscitation on one individual directly at the crash site, while firefighters worked with heavy cutting equipment to reach the train driver, whose access inside the damaged cabin was obstructed. Two Polish Medical Air Rescue helicopters were dispatched to transport the most critically injured victims to regional hospitals. Firefighters and police officers also tackled a vehicle fire caused by the collision, as police spokesperson Aleksandra Bałtowska described the condition of the truck.

The vehicle was almost completely burned. Only the cabin remained. We are searching for the driver.

Rail traffic halted on line 22

The collision caused extensive infrastructure damage and prompted an immediate suspension of rail services. National railway infrastructure manager PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe and carrier PKP Intercity confirmed that train movements along the Wolanów to Przysucha section were brought to a complete halt. PKP Intercity representative Mateusz Gdowski confirmed the incident on the Radom Główny to Poznań Główny corridor as company officials began assessing the disruption.

At this moment I can only confirm that an accident occurred near the village of Sokolniki involving the train Koziołek running from Lublin Główny to Szczecin Główny, on the Radom Główny to Poznań Główny section.

Local government response and recovery

Local authorities in Wieniawa warned residents and travellers to avoid the area surrounding Sokolniki Suche as emergency crews secured the crash site and cleared debris from the tracks. Brigadier Łukasz Darmofalski from the State Fire Service in Warsaw noted that the locomotive remained resting across the opposing track, blocking both directions of the line. Krzysztof Sobczak, head of the Wieniawa municipality, issued a public appeal via social media urging caution and compliance with emergency directives.

Please exercise extreme caution, avoid the area of the incident, and strictly follow the instructions of the emergency services. Expect disruptions to both road and rail traffic.

Municipal officials stated that further formal updates would depend on official verification from police and fire service commanders as on-site rescue operations continued.