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At least three people killed after train derails in southern Germany At least three people killed after train derails in southern Germany
(32 minutes later)
Regional passenger train carrying about 100 people derails near Riedlingen, leaving more people seriously injuredRegional passenger train carrying about 100 people derails near Riedlingen, leaving more people seriously injured
At least three people have been killed and others seriously injured after a regional passenger train derailed in southern Germany, police said. Three people were killed and several others injured when a regional passenger train derailed in a wooded area in southwestern Germany on Sunday, police said.
Federal and local police said the cause of the crash near Riedlingen, roughly 98 miles (158km) west of Munich, remains under investigation. About 100 passengers were onboard the train when the accident occurred at about 6.10 pm local time near the town of Riedlingen in Baden-Wüerttemberg state.
About 100 people were onboard the train at the time of the crash. Contacted by AFP, police initially said four people had been killed before correcting their statement to three victims. Authorities declined to elaborate on the number of injured or how seriously hurt they were.
A police spokesperson confirmed to AFP that three people had been killed in the accident, adding that “several people were injured”. The German rail operator Deutsche Bahn confirmed several deaths and numerous injured. Two train carriages had derailed “for reasons yet unknown”, it added.
Photos from the scene showed parts of the train on its side as rescuers climbed atop the carriages. Authorities were currently investigating the circumstances of the accident, the operator said, and traffic had been suspended over a 40km (25-mile) stretch of the route.
Storms passed through the area before the crash and investigators were seeking to determine if the rain was a factor. German media reported that a landslide might have caused the accident as severe storms swept through the region, according to weather services.
The German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, posted on X that he mourned the victims and gave his condolences to their families. The passenger train was travelling from the German town of Sigmaringen to the city of Ulm when it derailed in a forested area.
Deutsche Bahn, Germany’s main national railway operator, said in a statement that it was cooperating with investigators. The company also offered its condolences. In a post on social media, the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, expressed his condolences to the families of those killed.
More details to follow He added that he was in close contact with both the interior and transport ministers, and had asked them to “provide the emergency services with all the support they need”.
Footage from the scene of the accident showed yellow-and-grey-coloured train carriages lying on their sides, as firefighters and emergency services tried to get to the passengers.
According to local TV station SWR, helicopters arrived shortly after the accident to transport the injured to hospitals in the area, and emergency doctors from nearby hospitals were alerted.
German transport is regularly criticised by passengers for its outdated infrastructure, with travellers facing frequent train delays and various technical problems.
The government has pledged to invest several hundred billion euros over the next few years, in particular to modernise infrastructure.
In June 2022, a train derailed near a Bavarian Alpine resort in southern Germany, killing four people and injuring dozens.
Germany’s deadliest rail accident happened in 1998 when a high-speed train operated by state-owned Deutsche Bahn derailed in Eschede in Lower Saxony, killing 101 people.