At least one person has been killed and others have been seriously injured after a passenger train collided with a heavy goods vehicle at a railroad crossing in southeastern Germany, authorities say.

The accident happened at about 10 p.m. local time on Thursday when a regional train crashed into the vehicle at a railroad crossing in Freihung, located in the southeastern state of Bavaria. Approximately 50 passengers were on board the train.

The collision was followed by several explosions, causing serious fire damage to the front of the train. It was not immediately clear what the heavy goods vehicle was carrying, but a U.S. Army vehicle could be seen on a transporter near the crossing, though it had not been damaged.

The heavy goods vehicle was dragged for about 500 meters (1,640 feet) before the train came to a stop.

A police spokesman said at least one person had been killed in the crash, while an unknown number of other people had suffered injuries ranging from minor to serious. Several of the victims were flown to area hospitals.

Hundreds of firefighters, 35 ambulances and 3 air ambulances were at the scene, the Mittelbayerische Zeitung newspaper reported.

Other details were not immediately available.

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