The death toll from Friday’s train derailment in Bavaria has climbed to five, while at least 44 people are injured
Investigators combing through the wreckage of a passenger train that derailed on Friday near a resort in Germany’s Bavarian Alps have raised the death toll from the crash to five and said more bodies may be discovered.
According to police, at least 44 victims sustained injuries, which included unspecified numbers of children. Police also stated that four of the five people who died were all women. “At the moment, we do not believe there were further victims, but I cannot yet say for sure,”Frank Hellwig was the regional deputy police chief.
The crowded train had just left Garmisch-Partenkirchen on its way to Munich when it ran off the rails around midday on Friday. According to initial reports, four persons were reported dead and 30 injured. The scene was captured on film. One carriage had been flipped over onto its side, with the passengers still inside. After jumping over the tracks and turning, one carriage lay on its roof.
Authorities are currently investigating the cause of the accident and have ruled out foul play. “There were no third parties involved, so one must assume that some technical reason – either on the vehicle or on the rail – was the cause,” said Christian Bernreiter, Bavaria’s transport minister.
Police feared many passengers might have been students returning home as summer vacations were just beginning in southern Germany’s Baden-Wurttemberg region and Bavaria. The train also may have been packed with people using Germany’s new €9 public transport ticket, a subsidized pass that allows travelers to make as many trips as they like with their highly subsidized monthly pass.
The incident comes as the Garmisch-Partenkirchen district prepares to host the G7 summit later this month at the Schloss Elmau resort in Krun. The resort is only about 10 kilometers from Garmisch-Partenkirchen station.
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