A 47-year-old man is on the run from police, who believe he may have been responsible for the derailment of a Sydney train at Kembla Grange earlier this week.

Police are appealing for public assistance to locate the man, circulating his name and pictures on social media with an appeal for public information.

The man is wanted on an outstanding warrant for alleged property, traffic, trespass and theft offences.

Police say he may be in the Illawarra region and he is known to frequent Wollongong, Shellharbour and surrounding areas.

It’s believed he’s the same man seen running from the tracks shortly before a fast-moving South Coast line train collided with an abandoned stolen van and derailed, trapping the driver and injuring three others about 4am on Wednesday.

The impact destroyed the van and brought down power lines. The remaining carriages were left leaning against the Kembla Grange station platform.

Twelve passengers were on the train, with two taken to hospital for minor injuries, along with a train guard. At the time, police said it was “a miracle someone wasn’t killed or at least seriously injured”.

-with AAP