A collision between a cargo train and a passenger service near Moscow has left at least six people dead and 45 others injured.

The Russian interior ministry said the accident occurred when several carriages on the cargo train derailed and hit a passenger train moving on a parallel track near Naro-Fominsk, a town 30 miles south-west of Moscow.

Footage from the crash site broadcast by Russian television showed one side of a passenger carriage completely torn away.

Nina Suslonova, health minister for Moscow region, told the Rossiya 24 news channel that five people were confirmed dead at the scene. Dmitry Pestov, a deputy head of the regional government, later said another person had died in hospital.

Those who were injured were all in the same carriage.

The emergency situations ministry said 45 people were injured and 25 of them were taken to hospital. It added that 15 were in a critical condition.

The passenger train had been travelling from Moscow to Chisinau, Moldova.

Officials issued contradictory claims about the cause of the accident.

Moscow's public transport department initially said it was caused by a crack in the rail, but the Investigative Committee claimed it occurred when a cargo container came loose and hit the passenger train.