AN HEROIC train driver saved his passengers when he charged through the carriages, ordering them to take cover, seconds before the train crashed.

Dramatic CCTV footage has emerged of the incident in western Poland as the train, travelling between Wagroweic and Poznan, speeds at 110 kilometres an hour towards a truck which is on the railway tracks.

The driver, Mateusz Szymanski, can be seen rushing through the carriages warning terrified passengers who then fling themselves to the floor.

He applied the emergency break to try and desperately slow the train before it collided with the vehicle

Another camera from inside the carriage catches Mr Szymanski warning other passengers, before crouching down himself and grabbing onto a hand rail with seconds to spare before the train hits.

The footage then captures the moment the train and truck crash into one another, smashing the front of the train and shattering the glass windscreen.

Talking to Polish broadcaster TVN, Mr Szymanski said the quick reaction of those on board was the reason why no one was harmed: “Passengers reacted in the right way. They got on the floor on command immediately.”

Krzysztof Ryfa, a director of railway company Przewozy Regionalne, said: “He almost certainly saved passengers from injuries”.