Four killed as US commuter trains collide

Two commuter trains collided and derailed in a Los Angeles suburb today, killing at least four people and injuring dozens of others.

Firefighters picked through twisted wreckage scattered across the tracks and carried injured passengers from the trains to a triage centre set up in a car park.

Los Angeles Fire spokesman Brian Humphrey said four had died and dozens were injured.

One of the commuter trains was propelled into a Union Pacific locomotive that was parked on a side track overnight.

In a light rain, firefighters were searching through wreckage from the crash and set up a command post in a nearby parking lot, where injured people could be seen lying on mats awaiting treatment.

Nearly 300 firefighters were at the scene and 35 ambulances were taking injured passengers to hospitals.

One carriage was sent twisting backward by the force of the crash, which occurred after 6am local time (2pm Irish time) in Glendale. A small fire erupted in the crash, and smoke could be seen wafting from the wreckage.

George Touma, 19, said he was called by his mother, who was on one of the Metrolink trains.

“She told me she was bleeding in the head and her arm was really hurting,” said Touma, who was searching for her. “I’m really worried because she as vertigo and when I tried to call back she wouldn’t answer.

“She said she remembered hearing sequential loud noises and then somebody pulled her out of the train while it was burning. She was in a panicked mode and now she’s not picking up.”