Both trains were traveling south to London St. Pancras station when they collided outside the town of Bedford around 5:15 p.m., according to information on rail tracking websites. Emergency services deployed a number of resources to the scene including an air ambulance and hazardous incident team from the East of England Ambulance Service.
“We know that a number of people have been injured and one person has very sadly died,’’ police said in a statement. “A major incident has been declared, and officers are continuing to respond at the scene alongside colleagues from Bedfordshire Police and the local Fire and Rescue and Ambulance Services.''
The East of England Ambulance Service later said that 11 people had very serious injuries, 22 were seriously injured and 56 had minor injuries.
Eddie Dempsey, the general secretary of the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers, said the fatality was a train driver.
Peter Knapp, a passenger, said he was in the rear train when the collision occurred without any warning.
“There was a moment of being flung into the chair in front, and then I saw smoke," Knapp said. “People were crying, screaming. People were so scared and confused.”
“I got up and I saw a lot of people who were unable to speak, had broken legs," he added. "And then I managed to get out of the train and because I’m quite thin I was able to squeeze out through the gap in the doors.”
Photos and videos posted on social media showed dozens of people, some with bandages but many who appeared uninjured, standing and sitting among emergency vehicles parked on a road that runs parallel to the train tracks.