The Chinese authority says serious excessive speeding caused the train collision accident in east China, which killed at least 71 people.

Ruling out terrorism, the official Xinhua news agency quoted Wang Jun, head of the National Safety Authority, as saying that preliminary investigations indicated one train was involved in "serious excessive speeding."

The train was reportedly traveling at a speed of over 130 kilometers per hour, much faster than the 80 kilometers limit.

The crash took place on Monday when one train on its way from Beijing to Qingdao, derailed and crashed into another.

70 people were killed and more than 400 passengers have been hospitalized. Among all injured, 4 are French nationals.

So far, nineteen hospitals have received the victims, and are sparing no efforts in treating them. Liu Changwei is the head of a military hospital near the scene.

"Hospitals here have established experts' groups to ensure that the patients recover soon. We repeatedly discussed and adjusted our treatment plan several times. Meanwhile, we also invited renowned experts from Beijing and Jinan to hold group consultations."

Two railway officials have been sacked after the accident. Normal operation of the railway route was resumed on Tuesday.