Train Crash Near Moscow Kills At Least 4, Passenger Carriage ‘Crushed’ By Freight Train

At least four people have been killed and 45 injured when a passenger train collided with a freight train near Moscow, Russia's Interior Ministry said.

Vadim Andronov, rescue coordinator, told Itar-Tass that the death toll was likely to rise.

"One of the carriages of the passenger train was crushed by the freight train wagons," he said. "Rescuers are working to pull out injured people being crushed by the wagon."

The crash occurred at 12:38 p.m. local time (4:38 a.m. EDT) near Bekasovo 1 station, 37 miles from the nation’s capital. Thirteen carriages from the freight train reportedly derailed and hit the passenger train, Russian news agency Itar-Tass reported.

The passenger train was traveling from Moscow to Chisinau in Moldova. The cause of the crash remains unclear however, it may have been a result of a mechanical malfunction, Interfax news agency said, citing a source at Russian Railways, the national railway carrier.