Several dead in Croatian freight and passenger train collision

At least three people have been killed and eleven others injured after a passenger train and a freight train collided in central Croatia.

In a statement, police said the collision occurred around 9.30pm (8.30pm BST) near the town of Novska, on Croatia’s border with Bosnia.

“The impact is huge,” said Prime Minister Andrei Plenkovic, who rushed to the scene with other government officials.

Mr Plenkovic confirmed that three bodies had been found at the crash site so far, but said more victims could still be found in the morning.

He added that the injured were hospitalized, some in serious condition, but none were in a life-threatening condition.

“It’s night and there are no lights and we don’t know if there are any more victims at this time,” he said.

The cause of the collision is unclear.

Mr Plenkovic said the passenger train was a local line carrying 13 people, while the freight train had only the engine driver. Among the injured were foreign nationals, he said.

Both trains were pushed off the tracks after the collision, officials said. An investigation has been launched to determine what caused the collision.