TEHRAN: At least 21 people were killed and dozens injured Wednesday when a train derailed near the central Iranian city of Tabas after hitting an excavator beside the track, state media reported.

The train was on its way from the northeastern city of Mashhad to the central city of Yazd and was carrying 348 passengers, according to the national rail authority, when it careered off the track in the desert at 5:30 am (0100 GMT).

Yazd province’s emergency organisation chief Ahmad Dehghan said 21 people were killed in the incident, according to the website of state broadcaster IRIB, revising an initial death toll of 17 given by national authorities.

Earlier, national emergency services spokesman Mojtaba Khaledi told state television that 86 people were injured.

Khaledi had noted that the number of dead may rise, as some injured were in “critical condition”. Twenty-four ambulances and three helicopters — seen on state television airlifting casualties to hospital — were dispatched to the scene, he said.

Tabas is located in South Khorasan province, roughly 900 kilometres (560 miles) by road from Tehran. The provincial judiciary said arrest warrants have been issued for six people in connection with the accident.

The train “derailed after hitting an excavator” that was near the track, Mir Hassan Moussavi, the deputy head of Iran’s state-owned railways, told the state broadcaster.

Rescue teams inspected the overturned carriages as onlookers gathered nearby, pictures posted by the ISNA news agency showed.

One of the pictures showed a yellow excavator on its side by the track.

Five of the train’s 11 coaches came off the rails, the Iranian Red Crescent’s head of emergency operations, Mehdi Valipour, told state television.