Injuries reported in Swiss train incident

Six people have been hospitalised after a man attempted to set fire to a train and attacked passengers in north-eastern Switzerland.

The man, understood to be a 27-year-old Swiss citizen, was also injured, regional police in Saint Gallen said in a statement.

The attack took place at around 2.20pm near the Salez station on a train running between Buchs and Sennwald and police have said that some of the injuries were serious.

“According to the information we have for the time being, the 27-year-old Swiss man poured out a flammable liquid ... (which) caught fire,” police said, adding that the man “was also armed with at least one knife”.

Seven people including the suspected attacker were admitted to various hospitals with burn and stab wounds, the statement said.

The motive behind the attack remains unknown.

The victims included two men aged 17 and 50, and three women aged 17, 34 and 43. Dozens of people were on the train at the time of the attack, the police statement said.

The Salez station remains closed, and police said replacement buses had been set up.

Saint Gallen prosecutors have opened a criminal investigation into the attack.

Agencies