This Article is From Feb 15, 2010

Trains collide head-on in Belgium, 20 dead

Trains collide head-on in Belgium, 20 dead
Brussels: Two commuter trains collided head-on at rush hour in a Brussels suburb on Monday, killing 20 people, Belgian officials said.

The trains collided in snowy conditions just outside of the station at Buizingen around 0830 am (1300 IST).

"The most recent information we have is that 20 people died," town Mayor Dirk Pieters told the VRT radio network. "I base this on what the police and firefighters tell me."

There was no immediate word on the number of injured. Television reports showed that the force of the collision pushed the first car of each train up off the tracks. The cars ended up resting against each other.

VRT reported some victims were hospitalised and others were treated at a nearby sports complex.

The crash caused great damage to overhead power lines and rail traffic from Brussels to southwestern Belgium was halted.

There was no immediate word on the cause of the crash, which occurred in light snowfall.
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