London crash: Dozens of 'walking wounded'

Latest casualty figures from today's train crash outside London indicate five people dead, 15 others with life threatening or serious injuries, and a further 70 walking wounded.

A total of 151 people had been on the train.

The front portion of the train was said to be about half-a-mile north of the station.

Witnesses said they thought several of the injured had lost limbs.

Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Ambulance service said the latest casualty figures indicated five fatalities, and 15 people with life-threatening or serious injuries.

There was no information at this stage on how many of those injuries were life-threatening and how many serious.

A further 70 walking wounded had been assessed by a local GP and did not require hospital treatment, the ambulance service said.

Emma Kearney, a spokeswoman for Barnet Hospital, read a statement at the scene of the accident.

She said: ‘‘One patient, a lady, is being transferred to the Royal Free Hospital in London with neurological injuries.

‘‘Five patients are currently being taken to theatre where they will be operated upon and one patient is under observation.

‘‘The types of injuries that we are dealing with are open fractures, head injuries and chest injuries.

‘‘All staff who work on the A&E department and were on duty remain there and other staff came in - an excellent sign of how the NHS pulls together in a crisis.

‘‘All theatre lists were cleared, as is typical when a major incident occurs, and all patients who did not need to be in the hospital were allowed to be discharged.’’

She said Chase Farm in Enfield, north London was dealing with about 40 walking wounded.

Bob Crow, general secretary of the UK's Rail Maritime and Transport union, said in a statement: ‘‘Whatever the cause of this tragedy, we know that having a guard on board saves crucial seconds in helping the public to safety, alerting the emergency services and protecting the line.’’