False alarm of shooting at France's Nîmes station adds to ongoing terror fears

French security authorities announced late Saturday night that Nîmes train station and its surrounding areas are "returning to normal" as "doubts lift" after reports surfaced alleging the presence of three armed shooters on a Paris-bound train sent public into a massive panic.

"All doubts have been eliminated; operations at the Nîmes train station are now returning to normal," the Gard Prefecture – representing the local police – wrote on Twitter.

Local authorities also denied the reports of any shooting, calling them "unverified".

It was reported earlier during the night that three unknown assailants near the TGV train – en route from Paris to Montpelier – had opened fire on the public, leading to heightened fear at a time when people are still reeling from the horrific incidents in Barcelona, Finland's Turku, and Surgut in Russia.

Reports had suggested that people in the area heard shots being fired at the station and that three men allegedly exited the train afterwards.

Local police, nevertheless, prudently advised people to steer clear of the area surrounding the train station where gunshots were said to have been heard and which was evacuated immediately.

One man was taken into the custody, Midi Libre – a local newspaper – reported. The suspect was detained for "other reasons" and "suspicious activity" and was allegedly in possession of a non-lethal alarm gun in his backpack.

Britain's Mirror had initially stated that the train's passengers were asked to raise their hands as police officers conducted a thorough search.

Some of them took to Twitter to inform that everyone is "calm and unstressed".

"We are being held in the newsroom in Nimes by a shooting at the station in the city," Alcaro Garcia – a witness – tweeted.

It is "nice to see cops with guns in their hands yelling at you as you arrive at Nimes [train station], telling you quickly evacuate", Paul de Chabalitosse – another witness – wrote on Twitter.

There were no reports of any casualties in the incident.

The false alarm came on the first day of Vuelta a Espana – a cycling tournament held in the French city – when a heavy contingent of police and security personnel are present to ensure no untoward incident takes place.