Death toll from Argentine train reaches 49 Rescue members search for wounded people at the site of train derailling in Buenos Aires, capit...

Death toll from Argentine train reaches 49

Rescue members search for wounded people at the site of train derailling in Buenos Aires, capital of Argentina, Feb. 22, 2012. The derailment of an inter-city train has resulted in the injury of at least 300 people in the Argentine capital city of Buenos Aires early Wednesday, a local emergency rescue official announced. (Xinhua/Martin Zabala)

Rescue members take care of wounded people at the site of train derailling in Buenos Aires, capital of Argentina, Feb. 22, 2012. The derailment of an inter-city train has resulted in the injury of at least 300 people in the Argentine capital city of Buenos Aires early Wednesday, a local emergency rescue official announced. (Xinhua/Martin Zabala)

Rescue members take a wounded person out of the carriage at the site of train derailling in Buenos Aires, capital of Argentina, Feb. 22, 2012. The derailment of an inter-city train has resulted in the injury of at least 300 people in the Argentine capital city of Buenos Aires early Wednesday, a local emergency rescue official announced. (Xinhua/Martin Zabala)

Rescuers take wounded persons out of a carriage at the site of train derailling in Buenos Aires, capital of Argentina, Feb. 22, 2012. The derailment of an inter-city train has resulted in the death of at least 40 people and the injury of at least 550 people in Buenos Aires early Wednesday. (Xinhua/Telenoticiosa Americana)

Rescuers take wounded persons out of a carriage at the site of train derailling in Buenos Aires, capital of Argentina, Feb. 22, 2012. The derailment of an inter-city train has resulted in the death of at least 40 people and the injury of at least 550 people in Buenos Aires early Wednesday. (Xinhua/Telenoticiosa Americana)

BUENOS AIRES, Feb. 22 (Xinhua) -- At least 49 people were killed and more than 550 other were injured on Wednesday morning in the Argentine capital when a train crashed and derailed during rush hour at Once station, center of the city.

The accident occurred just after 8.30 a.m. local time (11:30 GMT) and the first reports stated that the train, which was unable to stop due to faulty brakes, crashed into the platform and derailed.

Alberto Crescenti, head of the SAME ambulance service said that "at least 40 people were dead."

Injured passengers, many of them trapped for hours in the train, were being taken to nearby hospitals for medical treatment.

Transport Secretary Juan Schiavi was present at the scene and described the accident as "terrible."

The is one of the worst railway tragedies in the country since February 1970, when 236 people were killed as a train from Tucuman in northern Argentina crashed into another which was stopped due to a mechanical failure.

Last September, 11 people were killed and 200 more were injured in a crash between two trains on the central Sarmiento line and a public bus that did not respect the stop sign in the Flores neighborhood in western Buenos Aires.