A Munich-to-Prague express train ran a stop signal and collided with a local commuter service in the Czech Republic yesterday, killing three people including both train drivers.

The authorities said eight passengers were seriously injured and several were flown by helicopter to hospital from the crash site near the western Czech village of Milavce.

Ten German passengers with lighter injuries were taken by ambulance to hospitals in Germany, said a Czech medical service coordinator. About 50 passengers in all suffered minor injuries not requiring immediate treatment.

A police spokesman said the other fatality was a passenger. All three fatalities were Czech.

"The Ex 351 went through a signal indicating stop... and collided with a passenger train," Transport Minister Karel Havlicek said on Twitter, referring to the express train. The trains collided near Milavce, 140km south-west of the capital Prague. The fast train struck a local train travelling from Plzen to Domazlice, said a spokesman for Czech Railways, which operates both trains.

REUTERS