Eight people are dead after the van they were traveling in was hit by a cargo train on a railway crossing in northeast China's Liaoning Province on Saturday.

The accident was reported at around 2:00 PM Saturday in the mountainous Fengcheng City, about 200 km east of the provincial capital Shenyang, according to local railway authorities.

The van had passed several vehicles waiting at the crossing, where the red light was on to warn drivers of a coming train, and the driver had continued on to the crossing apparently hoping to pass before the train.

The train driver saw the van in the distance and pulled the emergency brake, but it was too late, said a source with the Shenyang Railway Bureau on condition of anonymity.

Five people died at the scene and three others died later at hospital, he said.

The train driver was unhurt.

Unguarded railway crossings are found in many Chinese cities, posing a threat to motorists, cyclists and pedestrians.

(Xinhua News Agency November 11, 2007)