Credit: CFL
On Sunday 11 October 2026, Luxembourg's national railway company CFL and French railway operator SNCF commemorated the 20th anniversary of the Zoufftgen rail accident, paying tribute to the six people who lost their lives in a head-on train collision at the French-Luxembourg border.
According to CFL, the commemorative ceremony took place at the Zoufftgen memorial in the presence of the victims' relatives, Luxembourg's Minister for Mobility and Public Works Yuriko Backes, Dudelange Mayor and Member of Parliament Dan Biancalana, Zoufftgen Mayor Nicolas Morin, President of the Zoufftgen Community of Municipalities Roland Balcerzak, and representatives of CFL and SNCF management.
The accident occurred on 11 October 2006 at 11:44, when a CFL passenger train travelling from Luxembourg to Thionville collided head-on with an SNCF freight train coming from Thionville, near the French-Luxembourg border at Zoufftgen.
The collision claimed the lives of six passengers: Charles Antonoff; Patrick Choucoutou; and Alexandre Dées de Sterio; SECO RAIL team leader Eric Bruneau; CFL passenger train driver Stéphane Dondelinger; and SNCF freight train driver Christophe Kieffer.
During the ceremony, participants lit six candles in memory of the victims, laid commemorative wreaths and observed a minute's silence. Railway traffic was also temporarily suspended during the commemoration.
In its statement, CFL expressed its deep regret over the tragic circumstances that led to the accident.
Both CFL and SNCF reaffirmed their commitment to working together to maintain railway safety, describing it as a daily priority for passengers and employees.
