A train driver was killed and dozens of others were seriously injured when two passenger trains collided near Bedford.
The crash involved two East Midlands Railway (EMR) services, when one smashed into the back of the other on the same line shortly after 5pm on Friday.
A passenger on board one of the trains reported being “flung into the chair in front, and then I saw smoke”.
A train driver was killed and 33 other people were taken to hospital with serious injuries, British Transport Police said.
A further 56 people sustained minor injuries.
Network Rail, which manages Britain’s rail infrastructure, said its “absolute priority” was ensuring “everyone receives the care and support they need”.
Most carriages of the two southbound trains remained on the tracks but at least one derailed.
The two trains involved were operating the 4.40pm departure from Corby and the 3.50pm departure from Nottingham, both to London St Pancras.
Passenger Pete Knapp described people “crying, screaming” and said some seemed to have major injuries.
Dr Knapp, 40, told the Press Association: “There was a moment of being flung into the chair in front, and then I saw smoke. 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, 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.”
Dr Knapp said he saw people with “life-threatening, major injuries, minor injuries” as well as “people with bandages, people who couldn’t see straight”, while others like him were still able to walk.
He said: “I’ve got blood all over my trousers and my back hurts like hell but I’m all right.”
He said he had not felt the train slow down before the crash but other passengers told him they had.
Brett Byatt, another passenger on board, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme he was among three or four people in his carriage who were not injured, adding: “Everyone else had either a serious wound that was bleeding profusely, or a situation where they couldn’t stand, or couldn’t move their neck, or I saw a woman’s snapped leg.”
Mr Byatt, a teacher, who lives in Bedford, said he was now feeling “angry” the morning after the collision.
“I don’t know at whom, who specifically, but it’s more about we’ve got one of the oldest railway networks and signal failures happen a lot, and now I’m just wondering… why wasn’t that signalled to my train and why did that train driver lose his life over this?” he said.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer described the crash as “hugely concerning” and said he was “grateful to the emergency services for their swift response to this tragic incident”.
There was a huge emergency response to the crash, which happened just south of the Elstow interchange between the A421 and the A6.
It included multiple air ambulance helicopters and road vehicles.
People were asked to avoid the scene.
Bedford Hospital and Luton and Dunstable University Hospital both asked people not to attend their emergency departments “unless they have a genuine medical emergency”.
EMR trains between Bedford and London St Pancras have been suspended until at least Monday.
Online train trackers show the rolling stock involved in the crash were a class 360 and class 810. The front of the former hit the rear of the latter.
EMR began rolling out class 810s in December last year, and class 360s are at least 20 years old.
Eddie Dempsey, general secretary of the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT), said: “We are devastated to learn that a train driver and former RMT rep has tragically died as a result of (Friday’s) crash between Luton and Bedford.
“The thoughts of RMT are with their family, friends, colleagues and the Aslef trade union at this awful time.”
Dave Calfe, general secretary of the train drivers’ union Aslef, said: “Our thoughts tonight are with the family and friends of the driver who died in the crash near Bedford (on Friday) and with the passengers who were injured in the accident.
“We want to thank the emergency services who responded so quickly to help those on board.”
A team of Rail Accident Investigation Branch inspectors went to the site to gather evidence.
Police and a Rail Investigation Branch van remained at the scene on Saturday, and Ampthill Road was closed from the Interchange Retail Park roundabout to Manor Road in Kempston Hardwick.
A British Transport Police officer was standing by the road closure sign on the roundabout exit, to divert drivers.
The crash follows a collision between two trains in mid-Wales in October 2024 in which one passenger died and four other people were seriously hurt.
That was Britain’s first fatal crash involving multiple trains for more than a quarter of a century.
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