OFFICIAL STATEMENT.

PARIS. Wednesday (8.0 p.m.).

The administration of the State railways, on whose lines the accident happened, has issued the following account of the disastrous collision in the Batignolles tunnel this evening: “The train which left the Gare St. Lazare at 5.48 this evening for Versailles was run into in the Batignolles tunnel by the Issy-les-moulineaux train. Several coaches of the first train caught fire. Four persons were killed outright, and several injured, one very seriously. Help was immediately forthcoming from the railway staff at the St. Lazare station and from the fire brigade.” The collision took place in the Batignolles tunnel, a little before six o’clock, the primary cause being the breaking of a coupling on the Versailles train. The engine driver stopped the train and got down to see if he could put matters right, and a few minutes later the Moulineaux train, which was following, crashed into the rear coaches of the Versailles train, which suffered serious damage. Most of the passengers in the front portion of the train, however, were unhurt, and were able to escape along the line to the Batignolles station.

When the rescue workers succeeded in entering the tunnel, the Versailles train was already on fire as a result of the explosion of the gas cylinder. By eight o’clock the casualties were reported to be four dead, eighteen seriously injured, and fifty slightly injured. The disaster, which occurred at the time when all the Paris workmen and city employees were leaving for their homes, gave rise to scenes of intense excitement at the Gare St. Lazare, where all the gates were closed at 7.15 this evening. The tunnel was filled with smoke and flames, but the firemen, protected by special masks, managed to get their big hose into action, and flooded the coaches which were on fire. Half an hour’s hard work enabled them to get the fire, which was limited to the centre part of the train, under control. Reuter.