BERLIN: Four people were killed when two trains collided head-on in the southern German state of Bavaria on Tuesday, a police spokesman said, adding about 150 people were injured, including 10 very seriously.

The collision took place on a single track, he said.

“Two trains crashed head on,” said a police spokesman.

The cause of the accident was unclear and police said that, alongside the rescue effort, investigations were starting into establishing what had happened.

The accident between two local passenger trains operated by Meridian happened at 6.48am local time (05.48 GMT) near Bad Aibling in the southeastern corner of Germany.

Dozens of rescue teams were on site, including helicopters, and streets in the area were closed.

Meridian is part of the Transdev group. Deutsche Bahn is responsible for the track.

German news agency dpa reported that one train derailed in the crash and several wagons overturned.

It said eight rescue helicopters were standing on a lawn near the entrance to Bad Aibling and further rescue staff were on the way to the scene of the crash.