ICE door opened at 200 km/h: Federal police search for suspect in Lower Franconia
On the Munich–Dortmund route, an ICE train door opened during full-speed travel. Federal police are investigating for misuse of emergency safety equipment.
Emergency release during operation: Federal police hunt for ICE saboteur
The Federal Police Inspection Würzburg is investigating a dangerous incident on the Munich–Dortmund railway line. According to n-tv, a door on ICE train 528 opened at around 200 km/h in Lower Franconia on the evening of the incident—triggered by the emergency door release mechanism. The driver stopped the train shortly after 7.30 p.m.; the ICE came to a halt at the entrance portal of the Schönrain Tunnel near Karlstadt in Main-Spessart district.
On board were 238 passengers and eight Deutsche Bahn staff members. The door opened in the rear section of the train. No one was injured.
The emergency buttons for opening doors on the ICE are secured behind polycarbonate panels. According to police, this panel in the affected carriage had been smashed. Whether this constitutes deliberate sabotage or an accident remains unclear. Deutsche Bahn had already ruled out a technical fault early on: "Doors on the ICE do not simply open during travel," a railway spokesperson explained. The DB made no statement regarding the question of possible intent.
Initially it was unclear whether anyone had fallen from the moving train. Federal and state police, the fire service and emergency services searched the track ahead of the tunnel using drones, dog units, a helicopter and thermal imaging cameras. No one was found. Deutsche Bahn additionally alerted its rescue train from Würzburg equipped with emergency doctors, medical specialists and firefighters. In total, nearly 300 emergency personnel were deployed.
For passengers and rail staff, the incident meant a forced delay lasting several hours. Only at around 1 a.m. did the ICE continue under its own power to Lohr am Main—more than five hours after the stop. Police on site recorded the details of around 120 passengers from the rear section of the train and questioned them about their observations. The track was reopened to traffic at around 2.30 a.m.
Federal police are now investigating for misuse of emergency safety equipment. The knowing misuse of emergency alarms and the impairment of accident prevention and emergency safety equipment is classified as a criminal offence.
Source: n-tv