Denmark train crash: Six dead and 16 injured in railway accident on Great Belt Bridge

Tarpaulin on freight train reportedly hit passenger train travelling in opposite direction

Six people have been killed in a train crash in Denmark, police have said.

The crash happened on a bridge linking the islands of Zealand and Fyn, forcing its closure.

At a press conference on Wednesday, police also said 16 people had been injured.

The crash happened at around 8am local time on the Storebaelt bridge, which is part of the Great Belt bridges and tunnel link between the Danish islands.

Danish media reported a tarpaulin on a freight train hit a passenger train going in the opposite direction, prompting it to brake suddenly.

The bridge provides road and rail links between islands (AFP/Getty)

Denmark’s TV2 showed images of a freight train with the tarpaulin that covered the train torn.

“There was a very, very loud bang and then the train stopped,” a witness who had been onboard the train with his daughter told the channel.

Danish Railways said the victims were passengers on a train going from the city of Odense to Copenhagen when the accident took place.

Police spokesperson Arne Gram said the passenger train “hit an unknown object”, but did not comment further.

Another police spokesperson, Lars Braemhoej, said there was “considerable damage” on the passenger train, but added: “We do not know precisely what caused the accident.”

Flemming Jensen, the chief executive of the state-owned Danish Railways, said police and the Danish Accident Investigation Board are investigating the damage.

He said the operator “will contribute everything that we can to the investigations”.

In a statement, police urged passengers to contact next of kin to inform them of their safety and urged people not to share photos and videos of the accident.

The freight train was carrying packaging for Danish brewer Carlsberg. The company confirmed DB Cargo, the logistics arm of the German railway company Deutsche Bahn, had been involved in the crash.

A severe storm has made it difficult for emergency services to reach the train, which had stopped on the bridge.

An emergency centre has been established in the town of Nyborg at the western end of the Great Belt Bridge.

Fatal accidents are rare on the country’s highly developed rail network.

“Terrible train accident on the Great Belt Bridge in Denmark as a result of the storm Alfrida. Our thoughts are with the injured and with the families and relatives of the dead,” Swedish prime minister Stefan Lofven said in a tweet.

Before the accident the bridge was closed to road traffic due to high winds on Wednesday, but was still open to trains.

Road traffic resumed later on Wednesday with a 50kph (31mph) speed limit.

Agencies contributed to this report