Several hurt in crash between train and minibus carrying children in Belgium

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Several people have been hurt in a collision between a train and a minibus carrying children in northern Belgium, police said.

The accident happened at a level crossing near the town of Buggenhout, about 30 kilometres (20 miles) north-west of the capital, Brussels, on Tuesday.

Details about how it unfolded were not immediately clear.

Rescue workers on the scene of a crash between a train and vehicle in Buggenhout, Belgium (Koen Baten/AP)

Police said that “several people” were hurt in the accident, but that they are unable to provide further details.

Belgian private broadcaster VTM said that a number of people were killed.

Prosecutors and forensic and transport experts were due to arrive at the scene.

Rescue workers on the scene of a crash between a train and vehicle in Buggenhout, Belgium, (Koen Baten/AP)

In a social media post, Belgian interior minister Bernard Quintin expressed “great sadness” over “the tragic accident in Buggenhout, where a school bus was struck by a train”.

“My thoughts go out to the victims and their loved ones.”