Arson attacks cause major travel delays ahead of Olympic opening ceremony

For the second Friday in a row, travel delays have made international news.

Last week, a tech outage affecting Windows systems disrupted airlines around the world, as well as public transit systems. Companies like Delta are still dealing with the fallout, as the Deseret News previously reported.

Now, arson attacks on high-speed rail lines in France have delayed hundreds of thousands of travelers, some of whom were making their way to the Olympic opening ceremony, according to The New York Times.

“Train service is expected to be affected through the weekend, interrupting plans for more than a million people, including French vacationers, Olympic athletes and tourists,” the article said.

Security at the Olympics

Despite the arson attacks and the train delays, the Olympic opening ceremony is expected to proceed as planned, The New York Times reported.

Gérald Darmanin, France’s interior minister, said this morning that he remains confident about security at the Olympics.

If you don’t consider the arson attacks, “things (are) perfectly positive,” he said, per The New York Times.

Rather than security, Olympic organizers are worried about how train delays will affect visitors and athletes.

Already on Friday, at least two trains carrying athletes to the opening ceremony faced technical issues, according to The Associated Press.

“Two trains carrying Olympic athletes to Paris on the western Atlantique line were stopped hours before the opening ceremony, rail company SNCF said. One train was canceled, and authorities hope the other will become operational,” the article said.

How to watch the opening ceremony

Live coverage of the opening ceremony is set to begin at 1:30 p.m. EDT on Friday.

It will air on NBC and stream on the Peacock, NBC and NBC Olympics apps, according to NBC News.

The ceremony is expected to last about four hours.

Footage of the opening ceremony will air again in prime time on NBC on Friday night, per The Associated Press.