A freight train has smashed into a charter bus in Biloxi, Mississippi, dragging the bus almost 100 metres down the tracks and leaving at least three people dead.

Images from the scene show the bus, upright and still intact, straddling the tracks, with the CSX train pushed up against its left side.

The bus was carrying 50 people from Austin, Texas, Biloxi Police Chief John Miller said at a news conference.

He said authorities believe the bus was stopped on the tracks at the time of the crash, but they don’t yet know why.

At least three people were killed, according to Biloxi city spokesman Vincent Creel, who said emergency responders were still removing injured people from the bus more than 30 minutes after the crash, pulling many through windows.

Witnesses told WLOX-TV that passengers were senior citizens. Charter buses often carry patrons to one of Biloxi’s eight casinos, but Creel said he wasn’t sure where the bus was headed.

Meanwhile, a CSX freight train carrying hazardous materials has derailed in New York’s Hudson Valley.

The lead locomotive of the train ended up straddling both lanes of a two-lane road in Newburgh, about 100km north of New York City.

State police say the train derailed after striking a vehicle or front-end loader.
CSX spokesman Rob Doolittle says there are no reports of any leaks or spills.

Photos from the scene posted online by NBC show multiple tanker cars involved, power poles uprooted and a heavy police response.
It’s unknown if there are any injuries.