Italy train crash: Twenty killed near Bari in collision

Twenty people have been killed and dozens more hurt in a head-on collision involving two passenger trains in southern Italy, officials said.

The two trains were on a single-track line at the time of the crash, between the coastal towns of Bari and Barletta.

The emergency services have been trying to free passengers from the shattered carriages, near the town of Andria.

One of those pulled from the wreckage was a small child, who was airlifted to hospital.

The local authorities have appealed for blood donors to come forward.

It was unclear what led to the collision, which happened in good weather at 11:30 local time (09:30 GMT) in the southern region of Puglia.

BBC stated that a local prosecutor in nearby Trani said it was too early to speculate on the cause, although human error was likely to have been a factor.

Italian reports said one of the trains had come from Andria, and the other from Corato, a short distance to the south-east. Both were travelling at high speed.