At least 70 dead in China train crash

Beijing: At least 70 people are dead and 400 others injured after a pre-dawn train collision in eastern China, according to state media.

Xinhua news agency said the crash happened in the city of Zibo in Shandong province.

Earlier, Xinhua said 66 people had been injured, 51 seriously, including four French nationals.

According to witnesses, a passenger train from Beijing bound for the coastal city of Qingdao derailed and hit another train.

The second train, which was travelling from Yantai to Xuzhou, was also derailed, although it did not fall into the ditch.

Xinhua said authorities had determined the crash was caused by "human error", but did not elaborate.

The director and Communist Party chief of the Jinan Railway Bureau has been dismissed and would be investigated by the Ministry of Railways, Xinhua said.