S. Africa train crash kills 22

The passenger train was carrying schoolchildren

JOHANNESBURG, S. Africa -- Sixteen schoolchildren are among at least 22 who died when a passenger train crashed into a stationary freight train in eastern South Africa.

The crash occurred at Charlotte's Dale, 70 km (42 miles) north of Durban, at 4 p.m. (1400 GMT) on Tuesday.

"At the moment the death toll has risen to 22, we had 16 school children who died in the accident and six adults," a police spokesman told the South African Broadcasting Corporation.

"The injured were a total of 117, of whom 81 were slight injuries and 36 were seriously injured," he added.

Nomsa Sithole, a spokeswoman for the Metrorail passenger service, said 10 of the injured were in a critical condition.

"Rescuers have freed everybody from the wreckage according to the latest report I have," Sithole told Reuters.

"Investigations are under way into the cause of the accident and we will make them known once the investigation has been completed."

The passenger train and the freight train were both en route to Durban.

The South African government launched an inquiry into the safety of the country's commuter rail network following a series of crashes last year.

The country's worst rail accident in recent history was in 1994, when a train derailed near Durban, killing 67 people.