Two commuter trains collided head-on at rush hour in a Brussels suburb Monday, killing 20 people, Belgian officials said.

The trains collided in snowy conditions in the town of Buizingen around 8:30 a.m. local time.

"The most recent information we have is that 20 people died," Mayor Dirk Pieters said on Belgian radio.

He said he had received the reports from emergency officials onthe scene southwest of Brussels.

Kristien Berckmans, a Belgian railways spokeswoman, said earlier "there was considerable damage and several people were injured."

There was no immediate word on the cause of the crash.

Railway authorities said the collision caused great damage to overhead power lines in the station. Rail traffic from Brussels to southwestern Belgium was halted.