Confusion as train collides

Russell Merryman is a regular traveller on the route

BBC News Online's Russell Merryman, who was on board the train which collided with a minibus near Evesham, gives his account of the accident.

The seven o'clock train out of Hereford is informally known as "the sleeper", with most people on board grabbing an extra hour before arriving in London or Oxford.

But at 8.25 on Monday morning everyone who was asleep was awoken by the sound of an impact, debris rattling under the train and brakes slamming on as the train came to a standstill.

Passengers in the front first-class carriage, nearest to the point of impact, were showered in glass as a window exploded when the train and a minibus collided on a level crossing in Worcestershire.

Three people in the minibus were killed and five others injured, two seriously. One man on the train had a minor hand injury.

Passengers were confused but checked each other were unharmed, as train managers rushed through the train. They looked visibly shaken.

To be fair, we were told quickly by staff that the train had hit something at the level crossing on the road between Pershore and Evesham, and staff have been keeping us update as much as possible.

Anxious passengers

Passengers crowded at the windows on the right-hand side of the train, anxiously peering forward to try to see what happened.

Three people died when the minibus collided with the train

One man told me how he saw the minibus approaching the train line just before the impact. He said he could see a few people on board it, but it disappeared in a cloud of dust as the front of the train collided with it.

As I look out of the train from the third carriage I can see the damage done by flying debris. The carriage door is gouged out and twisted metal hangs from the underside of the front carriage.

One train manager told me of parts of the van were embedded in the front of the train and the debris from the accident has damaged the brakes on the front two carriages.

Passengers are ringing relatives and workmates to let them know they are safe.

As police scour the scene and ambulance staff tend to the injured, the mood on the train is one of sombre resignation, as we have been told we may be here for a significant amount of time.

Ironically, just before the accident, train staff apologised that the service was running late because one of the two power units wasn't working. It's sobering to think what might have happened if we had been running at full speed. It could have been much, much worse.