A freight train hit two children in the German city of Recklinghausen in the Ruhr area. A ten-year-old boy has died, a nine-year-old is fighting for survival and is being treated in a hospital, North Rhine-Westphalia’s interior minister Herbert Reul said on Friday night.
According to initial media reports, a group of people had been caught and dragged several hundred meters. Meanwhile, police said there was no evidence of other children affected. The fire service deployed a drone with a thermal imaging camera. The accident was reported to the emergency services shortly after 6 p.m. on Thursday. The exact circumstances are still open.
“It’s terrible”
The police held back with more information – perhaps not all family members were aware at first. Reul spoke of a “great drama if something like this happens to children”. That kind of thing won’t leave you alone. “It’s terrible.” It was unclear how the accident could have happened, the minister said. Pastors cared for the affected families. A police spokesman said the site is undergoing further forensic examination.
Numerous emergency services were at the scene of the accident late Thursday evening. The area was cordoned off over a large area, reports a dpa reporter. In addition to about two dozen police officers, assistant pastors were also present. Countless people gathered at the police gates.
Track bed searched for other victims
According to the fire service, 35 firefighters and rescue workers have been deployed. “We have searched the track bed,” says a spokesman for the fire service. The accident site is near a former freight yard. Recklinghausen is located in the northern Ruhr area.
Railway line was closed
The railway line between Gladbeck-West and Recklinghausen main station was closed. “We have no forecast yet when the route will be free again,” said a spokeswoman for Deutsche Bahn AG. A bus is used as a rail replacement service between the two stations.
According to Deutsche Bahn, there are restrictions on regional transport. Long-distance traffic is not affected. According to information from Deutsche Bahn, the accident happened in the Recklinghausen-Ost area.
Source: Krone
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