BBC 13 September 2011 Last updated at 15:35

Argentina bus and trains crash, killing at least seven

At least seven people have died in the collision of a bus and two trains in the Argentine capital, Buenos Aires.

At least 160 people were injured, seven seriously, reports said.

The crash happened during the morning rush hour as hundreds of commuters were waiting at the station in Flores, a Buenos Aires suburb.

One train hit the bus that was going through a level crossing near the station, dragging it along the lines and into a second train, police said.

The accident happened at about 07:00 local time (10:00 GMT) on the Sarmiento line, which connects the centre of Buenos Aires with the western suburbs.

Children injured

The impact reduced the bus to a fraction of its width as it became wedged against the station platform, AP reports.

Transport Secretary JP Schiavi said that the bus driver was among those killed.

He said that children were among the injured as many parents use public transportation to take them to school.

Officials are investigating reports that the bus driver did not stop and went through lowered barriers in an attempt to cross the railway line.

Train company spokesman Gustavo Gago said it believed the bus had "crossed on to the level-crossing when the barriers were low, but we await the results of the investigation to see if this is what happened".

A total of 100 ambulances and 10 fire engines were sent to the scene.

A local fire chief confirmed the injured were being taken to local hospitals, some by helicopter.

According to Argentine newspaper Clarin, firefighters took two hours to remove one of the train drivers who was trapped in the wreckage.

Argentina bus and trains crash kills 11

Over 200 people, including children, injured as train hits bus on level crossing in suburb of Buenos Aires

Associated Press
The Guardian, Wednesday 14 September 2011

Eleven people were killed in a rush-hour crash involving two passenger trains and a bus in Argentina on Tuesday, authorities said.

Police said 212 people were injured, many seriously, and were being treated at hospitals around Buenos Aires after the bus driver drove through barriers at a crossing in an attempt to beat the trains and get across the tracks.

Argentina's transport secretary, JP Schiavi, said the bus driver was among those killed.

The vehicle was hit by an oncoming train as it attempted to cross the tracks and was crushed into a nearby platform. The train was shunted off the tracks, hitting another that was preparing to leave the station in the opposite direction.

The force of the arriving train reduced the bus to a fraction of its width. Helicopters helped carry the injured to at least seven hospitals.

Schiavi said children were among those injured in the accident, which happened at 6.15am next to Flores station, where many parents use public transport to take their children to school.

The transport secretary said the barriers at the crossing appeared to have been functioning normally, but reporters at the scene said some witnesses had reported that one had descended only part of the way down, leaving room for the bus to try to drive across the tracks despite warning bells.

Schiavi said investigators were studying videotape of the accident to determine exactly what happened.