IC train crashes into group of workers Two fatalities on the train tracks near Hürth

Hürth · A tragic and terrible accident happened on Thursday just south of Cologne. An IC train ran into a group of workers. Much is still unclear, but one thing is certain: there are fatalities. The rail line between Cologne and Bonn was closed for many hours.

 The train was prepared for removal from the tracks on Thursday afternoon.

The train was prepared for removal from the tracks on Thursday afternoon.

Foto: dpa/Henning Kaiser

More and more people start to gather at the police cordon. Soon there are around 40 people. They are weeping, in mourning: Here, just a few kilometers south of Cologne, two of their loved ones died on the railroad tracks. Police lead a woman from the group across a field to the Intercity (IC) train that hit the two workers a few hours earlier. When she returns to the group, she breaks down crying.

It remains unclear as to why the workers were working on the railroad track as a train was approaching, according to police. Preliminary investigations show that they had been out working on the track on assignment from Deutsche Bahn. The group included five other workers who witnessed the death of their co-workers and suffered from shock. They were not hit by the train and remained physically unharmed. "Our thoughts are with the deceased, injured and their families," a Deutsche Bahn spokesman said.

The accident occurred on an open stretch near Hürth, within sight of a high-rise housing complex. The area is dominated by farms, commercial buildings, but also residential houses. Across the fields and farmlands, the Cologne Cathedral can be seen in the distance. The fire department and police were deployed in large numbers, and a helicopter circled above the accident site. Investigators secured evidence at the scene of the accident. “Besides that, criminal investigators are here at the scene. We are securing evidence, we are taking photos of it, we are talking to eyewitnesses whose testimony is very important to us," a police spokesman said. According to a police spokeswoman, the collection of evidence is routine, there is no investigation at this time.

According to a Deutsche Bahn spokeswoman, the IC 2005 was on its way from Emden to Koblenz and hit the workers at around 11 a.m. At the time, it was traveling at 160 kilometers per hour. According to Deutsche Bahn, there were about 50 people on the train. They had to remain on the train for several hours after the accident. According to police, passengers who wished to do so were able to receive care from emergency chaplains. The chaplains were also taking care of loved ones and relatives of those involved in accident. Passengers who were on the train at the time of the accident were finally evacuated on Thursday afternoon. They were to be transported onward by bus.

The train had a brake malfunction after the accident and according to the railroad, it was probably a result of the accident. This meant that the train had to be towed away. The rail line between Cologne and Bonn remained closed for almost seven hours, cancellations and delays in long-distance and local traffic were the result. According to Deutsche Bahn, long-distance trains between Cologne and Koblenz were diverted to the right bank of the Rhine, causing delays of around 20 minutes. There were also delays and partial cancellations on regional train lines 30 and 48 and on the Regionalexpress 5.

North Rhine-Westphalia's Minister President Hendrik Wüst (CDU) and NRW Transport Minister Oliver Krischer (Greens) expressed their condolences to the relatives via Twitter and thanked the emergency services who were at the scene of the accident. "My thoughts are with the relatives of the deceased and with their co-workers who had to witness this terrible tragedy," read the Twitter account of Wüst.

(Orig. text: ga/dpa / Translation: Carol Kloeppel)

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