Reichertshausen (Bavaria) – In the train accident in Reichertshausen, the railway apparently narrowly avoided a catastrophe.
According to the police, there was “lateral contact” between a regional train and an ICE in the afternoon. BILD learned from police circles how lucky the travelers were. An official on site: “That was a tough call!” At the same moment that the ICE from Ingolstadt passed the regional express, an ICE arrived from Munich.
“Both ICE trains were traveling at high speed in the station area; in the event of a collision, the ICE rocks up,” is how the police officer describes the situation. “If he had then brushed against the other ICE train, there would have been a catastrophe!”
After the accident, there was an approximately 25-meter-long scratch on a wagon on the ICE train.
How could the two trains brush against each other at the station?
Apparently there must have been a problem with the switches at the station that serve as flank protection – they are actually supposed to prevent an incoming train from running into the side of another. The switch in question from Munich was controlled from the operations center at the Donnersberg Bridge. It is unclear how the disruption could have occurred.
The Regio-Express had to wait at the train station because the ICE was supposed to overtake it towards Munich. However, the regional train drove too far past the switch and the stop signal. The ICE rammed him sideways, causing him to tilt to the left. At the same time, an ICE was traveling towards Nuremberg and its driver initiated emergency braking. Extremely lucky: the ICE towards Munich tipped back onto the track to the right – otherwise there would have been a catastrophe.
The railway line is now passable again, but only on a single track.