Geneva Bern police announced that two regional trains derailed on Friday, tens of kilometers away from each other, injuring several people in the north of the canton, at least one of them seriously.

Police spokeswoman Florina Schenck told AFP that the first train derailed at around 16:30 (14:30 GMT) between Leuchartz and Biel, and the second after about twenty minutes on the outskirts of Born zoom Hof.

She explained that the two accidents "resulted in many injuries."

Police added on Twitter that there was "at least one person seriously injured" in Born zum Hof.

It was not immediately clear how many passengers were on the trains.

The police have not yet determined the causes of the two successive accidents north of the Swiss capital.

The RBS company suggested that the strong winds that hit Switzerland on Friday were the cause of the second accident.

In the first accident, the police spokeswoman added, "the rear part of the train flipped onto its right side." The accident occurred on the line parallel to Lake Bien, which is operated by ASM.

A depression in southern England on Friday caused strong winds in a part of Europe, including Switzerland, according to the Swiss Meteorological Service (Meteo Suisse), referring to Storm Matisse.

The strongest winds were accompanied by heavy rains and storms, and the meteorologists warned in the morning of winds ranging between 80 and 110 km per hour.

Switzerland is famous for its extensive railway network, speed and reliability of transport.

Many tourists from all over the world visit the country to ride certain lines that cross exceptional alpine landscapes and to climb the steep hills.

Although train accidents are not rare in Switzerland, they generally do not cause a large number of victims.

In 2021, a total of eight people died (not counting suicides) and 47 were seriously injured in train accidents, according to figures from the Federal Statistical Office.

"Overall, the number of victims of railway accidents has decreased significantly in recent decades - despite an increase in transport services," the statistics office said.

The deadliest disaster in Swiss railway history occurred on June 14, 1891.

A Jura-Simplon railway bridge built by Gustave Eiffel collapsed under the weight of a crowded train from Basel. The accident killed 73 people and injured more than 150.

On September 12, 1982, a train collided with a bus that was passing at a railway crossing whose barrier broke down in Pfaffikon, near Zurich.

39 people were killed in this collision and only two of the bus passengers survived