A train hit an unoccupied van on railway tracks in Gore on Tuesday morning.

Kiwirail general manager operations South Island Mark Heissenbuttel said a freight train heading north hit an unoccupied van on the line at Gore just before 4am.

There were no injuries, no damage to the track and only minimal damage to the locomotive.

The train resumed travelling north at 8am, he said.

Police attended the scene, and questions regarding the van should be directed to them, he said.

A police spokesperson said enquiries were ongoing into the incident, but they did not answer questions about whether police knew why the van was on the train tracks, whether it was stolen or had broken down, or whether anyone was spoken to by police at the scene.

The Gore District Council reported that the town’s heavy traffic bypass had been closed because train carriages were blocking the Hyde St crossing, but it had now reopened.

“We understand the train hit an unoccupied van on the tracks somewhere near the Mersey St crossing,’’ it reported.

A council spokesperson said it understood KiwiRail had to get staff and a driver down from Dunedin after the incident.

Alarm bells at the crossing went off for an extended time after the incident.