Ammon News - At least one person was killed and about 30 injured after a passenger train derailed in the Netherlands early on Tuesday, emergency services said.

The train, carrying at least 50 people, hit construction equipment on the track in Voorschoten, a village near The Hague.

Many of the passengers were seriously hurt in the accident.

The front carriage of the night train from Leiden city to The Hague derailed and ploughed into a field after the accident, ANP news agency reported.

The second carriage was on its side and a fire broke out in the rear carriage but was later extinguished, it said.

A fire service representative told a Dutch radio station that 19 people were taken to hospital and others were treated at the scene.

“This is an incredibly tragic accident,” said Voorschoten Mayor Nadine Stemerdink.

"I sympathise with the victims. Unfortunately, there is also a fatality to mourn. My thoughts go out to all the family and friends of those involved.”

Earlier reports said the passenger train collided with a freight train.

Trains between Leiden and parts of The Hague were cancelled, Dutch Railways said on Twitter.

A small fire broke out at the rear of the train, but it was quickly extinguished, fire service spokeswoman Ingrid de Roos told WNL News.

John Voppen, chief executive of rail network company Pro Rail, called the accident "a black day for Dutch railways" and said the cause was under investigation.

The National News