On 3 June 2022, a double decker regional train derailed north of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, near Burgrain on the Munich–Garmisch-Partenkirchen railway in southern Germany.[2][3] Five people died and 68 passengers were injured, 16 of them seriously.[4]
| Burgrain train derailment | |
|---|---|
 The DB Class 111 035-2 locomotive involved, also with five Bombardier double-deck carriages, photographed in 2011 | |
 | |
| Details | |
| Date | 3 June 2022 12:15 CEST (11:15 UTC) |
| Location | Burgrain, Garmisch-Partenkirchen, southern Germany 97.5[1] km (60.6 mi) south from Munich |
| Coordinates | 47°30′52″N 11°06′27″E / 47.51445°N 11.10757°E |
| Country | Germany |
| Line | Munich–Garmisch-Partenkirchen railway (KBS 960) |
| Service | RB 6 |
| Incident type | Derailment |
| Statistics | |
| Trains | 1 |
| Deaths | 5 |
| Injured | 68 |
Derailment
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Five passenger carriages derailed at a curve near Loisachauen in the Burgrain district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen,[5] heading north between Garmisch-Partenkirchen station and Farchant station. The electric locomotive was at the rear of the push–pull train configuration.[1] The middle three carriages slid down an embankment next to the highway junction of Bundesstraße 23 and Bundesstraße 2 on the approach to the Farchant Tunnel.[1] The derailment occurred at milestone position 97.5 kilometres (60.6 mi), as measured from Munich.[1]
Three overhead line supports were knocked over in the accident, while 500 sleepers and 700 m of track were so badly damaged that they had to be replaced. [6] Three of the double-deck coaches had to be written off.
Soldiers travelling on board the train were able to provide first aid.[7] The location of the derailment right next to a main road allowed emergency vehicles to be brought in quickly.[7] Six rescue helicopters attended.[8] Lightly injured people were taken to a local building for care.[8] Train services were suspended between Oberau station and Garmisch-Partenkirchen station.[8]
Five people were killed.[9] Two of them were refugees from Ukraine.[10] The accident took place on the last Friday before the Pentecost holiday, meaning there were many children on the train.[7]
Victims
editFive people died in the crash: a 13-year-old boy from the Garmisch-Partenkirchen district, a 51-year-old woman from Wiesbaden, a 70-year-old woman from the Munich district and two Ukrainian women, aged 30 and 39, who had fled the Russian invasion of their homeland.[11]
In the first nine days after the crash, there were reportedly 44 injured, of whom 15 were seriously injured; [12] the police later updated this. As of 12 June, 16 people were reportedly seriously injured, while 52 had suffered less grievous injuries. [13]
Investigation
editThe Federal Authority for Railway Accident Investigation (Bundesstelle für Eisenbahnunfalluntersuchung, or BEU) began an investigation into the course of events later on the same day as the accident.[14] The Weilheim police service established a special commission with some 50 members, working under the "Munich II" Public Prosecution Service, to review any application of criminal law to the accident. The commission was named "Soko Zug", the former word being a contraction of "Sonderkommission" ("special commission") and the latter the German word for "train".[15] Further, the Prosecution Service assigned an independent external consultant to prepare an expert report analyzing the accident. The train was seized for examination; early on, the bogies underwent close inspection.[16][17] A length of a few hundred metres of rail southwards from the derailment site was dismantled for the investigation and likewise secured.[18] The bogies and wrecked coaches stored nearby have since been under police guard, as were the locomotive and the last coaches still left on the track before they were taken away.[19] The investigation quickly came to focus on the rails and the bogies, with concentration on technical defects.[20] Even the earliest investigation, according to police information, showed that the permitted speed limit at the accident site had been observed.[21]
No faults, such as a broken wheel, were found in the train's running gear. It seemed, not that the wheels had jumped the rails, but rather that in a few spots, the rails had come loose from their fastenings and tipped over onto the sleepers.[22] Bayerischer Rundfunk reported on 30 June 2022 that a circular from the Bundestag's transport board mentioned that horizontal cracks in damaged sleepers may have been a contributing cause to the accident, leaving the rails with too little hold on the sleepers, leading to an effective broadening of the track gauge, and the consequent derailment.[23] Also, a locomotive drivers' chatroom conversation that came to Report Mainz's attention referred to the defective state of the railway line, especially from Tutzing on south.[24] Poor workmanship at a sleeper manufacturer was assumed to be at play.[25] A private analysis in July 2022 put forth the suggestion that the embankment over which the railway ran might have been undercut by the stream that runs by just there, leaving the earthworks unstable, which in turn led to the derailment. This brook had been diverted in the 1990s during the widening of Bundesstraßen B2 and B23, putting it nearer the railway embankment.[26] A professional opinion expressed by the Munich II prosecutor's office beginning in early 2023 holds that the embankment became waterlogged, and that this could be the derailment's cause.[27][28] An interim report from the BEU on 1 June 2023 names a defect in the railway line's permanent way as the primary accident cause: "The prestressed concrete sleepers laid at this place displayed damage, which leads to the conclusion that there was a loss of prestressing within the sleeper. This consequently led to a structural failure and the breaking away of the rail-fastening chairs in the direction of the introduced forces."[29]
On 7 June, the "Munich II" Public Prosecution Service announced that it had begun preliminary proceedings against three Deutsche Bahn employees on the grounds of reasonable suspicion of negligent homicide.[30] The three employees in question were the traffic controller who was on duty that day at the Weilheim control centre, the locomotive driver and the one responsible for the permanent way along the stretch of line where the accident happened.
See also
edit- Garmisch-Partenkirchen train collision, a different rail accident, in 1995.
References
edit- ^ a b c d Friedmann, Jan (2022-06-03). "Die Lichter der Lok brennen noch" [The locomotive lights are still on]. Der Spiegel. Retrieved 2022-06-03.
Doch beim Streckenkilometer 97,5 – von München aus gerechnet … Der erste Doppelstockwagen, den die Lok angeschoben hat, steht noch im Gleis. Der nächste ist schon halb die Böschung hinuntergerutscht, der dritte vollständig umgekippt. … Die eingleisige Strecke hier geht in eine leichte Kurve, kurz vor der Überquerung des Flusses Loisach … gleich neben der Bundesstraße 2, die hier in Richtung des Farchanter Tunnels führt. … rund 140 Fahrgäste
- ^ "At least three dead as train derails in Alps in southern Germany". The Guardian. 2022-06-03. Retrieved 2022-06-03.
train has derailed in the Alps in southern Germany, leaving at least three people dead … The line between Garmisch-Partenkirchen and Oberau, north of the accident site, has been closed.
- ^ "Bavaria train crash: At least four killed in German rail accident". BBC News. 2022-06-03. Retrieved 2022-06-03.
At least four people were killed and about 30 injured when a train derailed in Germany's south-eastern state of Bavaria, police say.
- ^ "Garmisch-Partenkirchen: Polizei korrigiert Zahl der Verletzten auf fast 70". Der Spiegel (in German). 2022-06-13. ISSN 2195-1349. Retrieved 2022-06-13.
- ^ "Zug entgleist bei Garmisch-Partenkirchen – mehrere Tote" [Train derailment at Garmisch-Partenkirchen ‒ multiple deaths]. Der Spiegel (in German). 2022-06-03. Retrieved 2022-06-03.
von Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Richtung München unterwegs. Das Unglück ereignete sich ersten Angaben zufolge gegen 12.15 Uhr im Gemeindeteil Burgrain in den Loisachauen.
- ^ "Nach Zugunfall von Garmisch-Partenkirchen auch Lok geborgen". BR24. 2022-06-17. Retrieved 2022-06-29.
- ^ a b c "Tote und Schwerverletzte bei Zugunglück" [Dead and seriously injured in train accident]. Tagesschau (in German). 2022-06-03. Retrieved 2022-06-03.
- ^ a b c "Mindestens drei Tote bei Zugunglück in Oberbayern" [At least three killed in train accident in Upper-Bavaria] (in German). 2022-06-03. Retrieved 2022-06-03.
sechs Rettungshubschrauber im Einsatz, drei davon vom ADAC. … Erste Leichtverletzte seien geborgen. Sie würden in einem nahegelegenen Gebäude gesammelt. … Züge aus Richtung München wenden vorzeitig in Oberau. Aus Richtung Mittenwald wenden die Züge vorzeitig in Garmisch-Partenkirchen.
- ^ "Zugunglück bei Garmisch-Partenkirchen: Alle Vermisstenfälle aufgeklärt". Der Spiegel (in German). 2022-06-05. ISSN 2195-1349. Retrieved 2022-06-05.
- ^ "Zugunglück: Zwei Ukrainerinnen unter Todesopfern von Garmisch-Partenkirchen". MSN (in German). Retrieved 2022-06-06.
- ^ "Zugunglück Burgrain - Medien-Update 7. Juni". Polizei Bayern. 2022-06-07. Retrieved 2022-07-10.
- ^ "Zugunglück in Burgrain mit mehreren Toten und Verletzten". Polizei Bayern. 2022-06-06. Retrieved 2022-07-10.
- ^ "Polizei korrigiert Zahl der Verletzten auf fast 70". Spiegel. 2022-06-13. Retrieved 2022-07-10.
- ^ "Untersuchungen zur Zugentgleisung zwischen Garmisch-Partenkirchen und Farchant aufgenommen" [Investigation into train derailment between Garmisch-Partenkirchen and Farchant opened]. press release (in German). 2022-06-03. Retrieved 2022-06-05.
- ^ "Zugunglück Burgrain - Soko Zug sucht Zeugen und Bild- oder Videomaterial vom Unfalltag" [Soko Zug seeks witnesses and photo or video material from the day of the accident]. Polizeipräsidium Oberbayern Süd. 2022-06-10. Retrieved 2022-06-16.
- ^ "Zugunglück in Burgrain mit mehreren Toten und Verletzten" [Train accident in Burgrain with several dead and injured] (in German). 2022-06-06. Retrieved 2022-06-18.
- ^ "Nach Zugunglück: Umgestürzte Waggons zerteilt und weggebracht" [After train accident: Tipped railway cars separated and brought away] (in German). 2022-06-07. Retrieved 2022-06-18.
- ^ "Nach Zugunfall von Garmisch-Partenkirchen auch Lok geborgen" [After Garmisch-Partenkirchen train accident, loco, too, recovered] (in German). 2022-06-17. Retrieved 2022-06-18.
- ^ "Zugunglück bei Garmisch: Soko "Zug" sucht nach Zeugen – Bilder und Videos können hochgeladen werden" [Train accident near Garmisch: Special Commission "Zug" seeks witnesses – pictures and videos can be uploaded] (in German). 2022-06-12. Retrieved 2022-06-18.
- ^ Heflik, Katharina (2022-06-07). "Zugunglück in Garmisch-Partenkirchen: Ermittler untersuchen einzelne Schienen und Schwellen" [Train accident in Garmisch-Partenkirchen: Investigators examine individual rails and sleepers]. Die Zeit (in German). Retrieved 2022-06-18.
- ^ "Nach Zugunglück: Bahn bereitet Bergung von Lok und Waggon vor" [After train accident: Railway prepares recovery of loco and coach] (in German). 2022-06-10. Retrieved 2022-06-18.
- ^ Schrader, Sebastian; von Andrian, Walter (2022). "Entgleisung bei Garmisch-Partenkirchen fordert fünf Todesopfer". Schweizer Eisenbahn-Revue. 7 (2022): 350–351.
- ^ "Nach Zugunglück: Dokument legt Verdacht zur Unfallursache nahe". br.de. BR. 2022-06-30. Retrieved 2022-06-30.
- ^ "Nach Zugunglück bei Garmisch-Partenkirchen: Anlagenverantwortliche Bahnmitarbeiter warnten Bahnvorstand bereits 2019 vor möglichen Sicherheitsrisiken im Streckennetz". www.swr.de. Report Mainz. 2022-07-05. Retrieved 2022-08-15.
- ^ "Materialfehler: Bahn repariert Gleisschwellen in Mitteldeutschland". www.mdr.de. mdr.de. 2022-08-19. Retrieved 2022-08-19.
- ^ "Spekulationen um Zugunglück: Fehlplanung in Burgrain?". www.br.de. Bayerischer Rundfunk. 2022-07-26. Retrieved 2023-05-30.
- ^ Köpf, Matthias; Ott, Klaus (2023-02-07). "Garmisch-Partenkirchen: Aufgeweichter Bahndamm Ursache für Zugunglück?". www.sueddeutsche.de. Süddeutsche Zeitung. Retrieved 2023-05-30.
- ^ "Durchnässter Bahndamm ursächlich für Unfall von Burgrain?". Eisenbahn-Revue International. 4: 184. 2023.
- ^ "Zwischenbericht Zugentgleisung, 03.06.2022, Bf Garmisch‐Partenkirchen – Bf Farchant". www.eisenbahn-unfalluntersuchung.de. Federal Authority for Railway Accident Investigation. 2023-06-01. Retrieved 2023-06-01.
„Die an dieser Stelle verlegten Spannbetonschwellen wiesen Beschädigungen auf, die auf einen Verlust der Vorspannung innerhalb der Schwelle schließen ließen. Diese führten in der Folge zu einem Versagen der Struktur und zum Wegbrechen der Schienenauflager in Richtung der eingeleiteten Kräfte."
- ^ "Zugunglück bei Garmisch-Partenkirchen: Ermittlungen wegen fahrlässiger Tötung" [Train accident near Garmisch-Partenkirchen: Investigation into negligent homicide]. Der Spiegel (in German). 2022-06-06. Retrieved 2022-06-18.