Passenger dead after train derails

A train has been derailed in this fatal smash in Dandenong South Picture: Jon Hargest Source: Herald Sun

Train smash and derailment in Dandenong South. Picture: Channel 7 news chopper Source: Supplied

A TRAIN driver and his passengers were buried under rubble after a horror crash with a truck claimed one life in Dandenong South today.

Police said a 43-year-old Cranbourne West man was found dead, buried under 1.5m of rubble in the front carriage.

Eleven of the 13 known passengers on the train have been taken to hospital - many with lacerations and bruising.

Pictures of fatal train crash

A seriously injured 59-year-old woman who was taken to Dandenong Hospital has since been transferred to The Alfred hospital for surgery.

The train driver, who was trapped for a significant time until onlookers plucked him out, is in a serious condition at The Alfred.

People were buried under potatoes, chairs and broken glass and under all sorts of debris

Most of the passengers have been discharged, but a 36-year-old man remains under observation at Dandenong Hospital and a man and a woman are being kept at Frankston Hospital overnight for check ups.

Assistant Commissioner Robert Hill had earlier said police feared more victims could be pulled from the wreckage.

"At this stage I must reinforce that we are yet to completely examine the scene," he said.

"We might have more injured or deceased...the investigation is still in its infancy."

Were you a witness to the train crash? Send your pictures or video to news@heraldsun.com.au

The truck, carrying potatoes and vegetables, was travelling south along Abbotts Rd when it reportedly passed through the level crossing and its trailer collided with the Metro train at 11.42am.

The force of the collision ripped open the first carriage and pushed four of the six carriages off the track with two crashing on to their side and sliding for up to 250m.

The track, overhead wires, signalling system and sleepers were all seriously damaged.

Mr Hill said police were investigating why the truck crossed the intersection with the boom gates down.

The 59-year truck driver was taken to Dandenong Police station and assisted police with their inquiries.

Detective Sergeant Rohan Courtis said the truck driver had been co-operative with police.

The driver was released pending summons, he said.

Witness Mick McGuigan watched the tragedy unfold and said it was "as if a bomb went off" when the train and truck collided.

Mr McGuigan then rushed to help find the injured passengers and pull them to safety.

"People were buried under potatoes, chairs and broken glass and under all sorts of debris,'' he said.

Premier Ted Baillieu, who was at the scene, described the man's death as "a tremendous tragedy".

"Our hearts and our sympathies go out to his family, his friends," he said.

"This is a tragic loss of life but we can say ... it's extremely lucky that no more lives were lost."

Ambulance paramedic Andrew Watson said a number of passengers were able to free themselves and walked to paramedics.

"Considering the impact of this collision today, we are lucky that no other people were seriously injured," he said.

Metro boss Andrew Lezala said the train driver was "severely traumatised" with his cabin "pretty much destroyed" in the crash.

He said cameras and recording devices onboard the train would be studied to help police piece together what happened.

Train services have been suspended between Dandenong and Cranbourne.

Buses will operate until the scene is cleared.

Melbourne Cup commuters face a week of chaos with major train delays and crowding as a result of the tragedy.

Mr Lezala said because the ground either side of the track is boggy, it will take at least five days to fix and reopen the line - possibly longer.

Transport Minister Terry Mulder said it was one of the worst accidents since the 2007 Kerang rail disaster. 

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