A closed market is seen in northwest Pakistan's Peshawar on March 20, 2021. Pakistan is facing a serious third wave of the virus and the government is taking steps to ensure the standard operating procedures to control the spread of the virus.(Photo: Xinhua)

At least 30 people were killed and dozens injured Monday when a packed Pakistani inter-city train plowed into another express that had derailed earlier, officials said.

An unknown number of people were still trapped in mangled wreckage near Daharki in northern Sindh province, a railway spokesman said, adding rescue workers had called urgently for specialist equipment so they could be extracted.

"The site is far and that's why we are facing some trouble in the rescue work," he said, adding at least six wagons were destroyed in the accident.

Mobile phone footage shown on television from the site revealed the wreckage, with several green Pakistan railway carriages lying on their side.

One clip showed medics giving an intravenous drip to a conscious passenger whose lower torso was trapped between crushed carriage benches.

The accident happened in a remote part of the province on a raised section of track surrounded by lush farmlands.

The Millat Express was heading from Karachi to Sargodha when it derailed before dawn, spilling carriages onto a track bringing the Sir Syed Express from Rawalpindi in the opposite direction.

The railway spokesperson and senior Daharki police officer Umar Tufail said 30 people had been killed and dozens injured.

Prime Minister Imran Khan said he was "shocked" by the accident and promised a full inquiry.

"Ordering comprehensive investigation into railway safety faultlines," his official Twitter account said. 

AFP