Traffic resumes after train derails in NE China

A freight train in northeast China derailed early on Monday morning after being struck by a truck that had careered through a closed road crossing.

No casualties were reported, but the accident led to a section of the railway being closed for 16 hours.

Passenger journeys were not disrupted as trains were able to use other tracks after the accident, local authorities said.

The truck, loaded with iron ore, jumped a railway crossing that links Jinzhou in Liaoning Province and Chengde in Hebei Province at 3:30 a.m., said an official with the Shenyang Railway Bureau.

Despite the stop signal, the truck did not stop and crashed through the guardrail, hitting the middle of the cargo train.

The locomotive and 11 of its cars derailed.

The truck, which had a maximum cargo weight of 34 tonnes of cargo, was carrying 50 tonnes of iron ore, according to an investigation.

China's railways are bracing for their busiest season as tens of millions of people return home to celebrate the Lunar New Year.