At least 55 dead and nearly 300 injured after train derails in Cameroon

At least 55 people have died and 575 have been injured after a passenger train overturned in Cameroon.

The packed train derailed and collapsed down a small bank in the town near the small town of Eseka as it travelled between Cameroon's capital Yaounde and the port city of Douala.

Video showed shocked passengers being pulled from the wreckage.

"There was a loud noise," said a Reuters journalist who was traveling in a the train at the time of the accident.

"I looked back and the wagons behind us left the rails and started rolling over and over. There was a lot of smoke."

Passengers are pulled from the train's windows after the accident Credit: Reuters
The train is reported to have been overloaded Credit: Reuters

Another passenger said they had seen dozens of dead and injured passengers being taken out of the train by rescue workers.

Rail officials said the train had been carrying 1,300 passengers instead of the usual 600, according to the Associated Press.

There were claims that extra carriages may have been added to accommodate extra passengers after nearby roads were blocked by landslides and a collapsed bridge.

The train's operator Camrail, which is run by France's Bollore Railways, said it had sent teams to the site of the accident but declined to give any further details.