Photos: Seven Dead, Many Others Injured As Commuter Tram Overturns In South London

A commuter tram which crashed and overturned in South London this morning, killing seven people and injuring more than 50, was travelling at a 'significantly higher speed than is permitted', it was announced this afternoon.

Witnesses said they heard a loud crash shortly after 6am when the two-carriage vehicle came off the rails near Croydon in torrential rain. According to one witness, the driver said he 'blacked out' and fell onto the controls.

Police said tonight that the 42-year-old driver, from Beckenham, had been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter. He is in police custody as detectives continue their investigation. 

Residents said the vehicle was coming down towards a bend on a steep slope and carried on down the hill rather than turning, it then tipped over onto its side at the entrance of a tunnel.

Several survivors were trapped in the wreckage, with a large team of emergency workers battling for hours to free them and ferry the dozens of injured to hospitals across the capital.