Nine killed as minibus and train collide in Poland

Nine people have been killed and one person is seriously injured after a train and a minibus collided in the Polish town of Bratoszewice.

The six-person bus was carrying 10 passengers, mostly Ukrainian seasonal workers, when the accident occurred at an unguarded crossing.

It is not known why the bus did not stop.

Some 243 people have been killed on Polish roads this summer, making them some of the most dangerous in Europe.

The bus was on its way to a local food processing factory when it drove on to the unguarded level crossing and collided with an oncoming commuter train.

The sheer force of the collision hurled the bus 30 metres down the track, killing five women and three men, police say.

A ninth person later died in hospital and one woman is still being treated for serious injuries.

Investigators found no evidence of tyre marks, suggesting the bus driver did not try to stop the vehicle.

The AFP news agency reported that about 30 passengers on the train escaped the crash unscathed.