Passenger train derails in Mississippi, one dead

The Amtrak train is shown shortly after derailing early on Tuesday evening near Yazoo City, Mississippi, in this TV image. PHOTO: AP

An Amtrak passenger train derailed and toppled on its side in rural central Mississippi, killing at least one person and injuring at least 65 others.

The 10-car train, traveling from New Orleans to Chicago, derailed about 40km north of Jackson on Tuesday night, authorities said, leaving in its wake twisted and heavily damaged track.

"We have one confirmed dead," said Amy Carruth, a spokeswoman for the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency. "We understand some of the injured are possibly critical."

All passengers and crew had been accounted for by late Tuesday, Carruth said.

Lee Stokes, also with the emergency agency, said that while the derailment was believed to be an accident, the FBI had sent agents to the scene. Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour declared a state of emergency.

The train appeared to leave the track on a trestle 1.5m to 1.8m above a swampy area and landed on its side several meters below the track surface. The train had an engine and nine cars, and most of the cars derailed.

Stokes it appeared about 65 people suffered "minor to critical injuries." She said the injured were initially treated at emergency stations, then moved to hospitals.

Dan Stessel, a spokesman for Amtrak, which provides national train services, said 68 passengers and 12 crew members were on the train.

He said he had no information on what caused the accident.