STORY: An explosion that damaged a Polish railway track on a route to Ukraine was an "unprecedented act of sabotage," Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Monday (Nov. 17), adding he would catch those responsible for an incident he said could have ended in tragedy.

The blast on the Warsaw-Lublin line follows a wave of arson, sabotage and cyberattacks that has hit Poland and other European countries since the start of the war in Ukraine.

Warsaw has in the past held Russia responsible, saying Poland has become one of Moscow's biggest targets due to its role as a hub for aid to Kyiv. Russia has repeatedly denied being responsible for acts of sabotage.

"The blowing up of the railway track on the Warsaw-Lublin route is an unprecedented act of sabotage aimed at the security of the Polish state and its citizens," Tusk wrote on X.

Warsaw said in October that Poland and Romania had detained eight people suspected of planning sabotage on behalf of Russia.

One local man recounted hearing a "terribly powerful explosion" around 9 PM on Sunday night (Nov. 16), adding that he had wondered if it might be a gas explosion or a stray military drone.

Local police said on Sunday that a train driver had reported damage on the railway line, but authorities were not able to immediately confirm that it was a result of sabotage.

Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said the military was inspecting a 120 km (74.6 miles) stretch of track leading to the Ukrainian border.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

Local recounts 'terribly powerful explosion' in Poland as PM calls railway blast 'sabotage'

VIDEO SHOWS: SITE OF ALLEGED SABOTAGE ON RAILWAY LINE / SITE WHERE SECOND EXPLOSIVE WAS REPORTEDLY DISCOVERED / LOCAL MAN RECOUNTING HEARING EXPLOSION / POLISH PM DONALD TUSK SOCIAL MEDIA VIDEO SAYING BLAST WAS SABOTAGE

SHOWS: MIKA, POLAND (NOVEMBER 17, 2025) (TVN - No use Poland)

1. VARIOUS OF SITE OF ALLEGED SABOTAGE EXPLOSION ON RAILWAY LINE BETWEEN WARSAW AND DEBLIN, CLOSE TO THE MIKA TRAIN STATION

2. VARIOUS OF POLICE ON SCENE

3. TRAIN PASSING (MUTE)

4. (SOUNDBITE) (Polish) LOCAL MAN, NO NAME GIVEN, SAYING:

"It was about 9 PM, maybe a few minutes after 9. I was watching TV and heard a terribly powerful explosion. The whole building shook, the windows, the glasses, and everything in the house. Everything shook so much. We didn't know what had happened, that was my first impression. My wife came up to me saying there was an explosion. We started looking around the area. I asked if a gas cylinder had exploded, or if it was an accident, or something like that, but we couldn't see anything, and finally everything went quiet."

5. VARIOUS OF RESPONDERS AT SITE

6. (SOUNDBITE) (Polish) LOCAL MAN, NO NAME GIVEN, SAYING:

"And then we thought, maybe it was another drone, because we've seen these cases in this country before, that a drone must have gotten lost and exploded in the area."

7. VARIOUS OF HALTED TRAIN AT SITE

8. (SOUNDBITE) (Polish) LOCAL MAN, NO NAME GIVEN, SAYING:

"Even a few kilometres away people heard that there was an explosion."

9. VARIOUS OF RESPONDERS AT SITE OF EXPLOSION

MIKA, POLAND (NOVEMBER 17, 2025) (DONALD TUSK - Access all) (SHOT IN 9:16 VERTICAL) (MUTE)

10. VARIOUS OF POLISH PRIME MINISTER DONALD DUSK VISITING SITE OF EXPLOSION WITH SERVICE OFFICIALS

MIKA, POLAND (NOVEMBER 17, 2025) (DONALD TUSK VIA X - Access all) (SHOT IN 9:16 VERTICAL) (EDITED AT SOURCE)

11. SOCIAL MEDIA VIDEO SHOWING POLISH PRIME MINISTER DONALD TUSK SPEAKING FROM SITE OF EXPLOSION, OVERLAID WITH VARIOUS OF TUSK WITH OFFICIALS, AUDIO OF TUSK SAYING (Polish): "Unfortunately, there is no doubt that we are dealing with an act of sabotage. Fortunately, it did not result in a tragedy, but this is a very serious matter. The police, CBS (Central Investigation Bureau), prosecutors, and experts are on site, looking into every detail of this case. Unfortunately, as we know, a similar incident may have also occurred to the southeast of here, on the same railway line, where we also witnessed an attempt to destabilise and destroy railway infrastructure, which could have also resulted in a railway catastrophe."

PULAWY, POLAND (NOVEMBER 17, 2025) (TVN - No use Poland)

12. VARIOUS OF POLICE INSPECTING TRACKS AT SITE WHERE SECOND EXPLOSIVE WAS REPORTEDLY DISCOVERED