Three train carriages derailed on an embankment near Lewes, East Sussex, on Friday, resulting in 20 injuries and significant weekend travel disruptions. Emergency services, investigators, and Network Rail personnel are working from a command center established in a nearby field to examine the accident site, the train, and the railway infrastructure.

Preparations were underway Friday for the use of a crane to remove the derailed carriages. The force of the train leaving the tracks flattened trees and left a section of track strewn across the embankment, according to witness accounts and images from the scene. One witness described the derailment as a "metal tube carving through the earth," with mud covering passengers and debris covering the area.

Several derailed train carriages lie on their sides down a railway embankment near Lewes in East Sussex. Rail workers and investigators in orange high-visibility clothing stand beside the track and in a field below, where a temporary canopy has been set up as part of the investigation.

Network Rail's safety director, Martin Frobisher, confirmed that investigations will examine whether the impact of heat on tracks and other infrastructure were contributing factors to the derailment, as well as a separate incident in Wickford. Speed restrictions were not in place at either location at the time of the derailments. Frobisher stated that it was too early to speculate on the full findings of the ongoing investigation, with a spokesperson for the Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) indicating that an update is expected next week.

Emergency workers standing on railway tracks after a train derailed.