Huge fire destroyed passenger train, cause unknown – DW – 11/03/2024

An investigation was ongoing after a passenger train that was stopped overnight at a station on the outskirts of Berlin suffered a major fire on Sunday. The five passengers still on board had to exit the train but were not harmed.

The fire department initially could not say where or why the fire on the diesel-powered train started on Saturday evening.

What do we know about fire?

Fire crews were called to the Ahrensfelde station on the Berlin-Brandenburg border after the alarm went off at around 21.50 local time.

The three-car train was about to begin its next journey towards the town of Werneuchen when the train driver heard an explosion.

Smoke appeared and flames were visible, prompting the driver and a female attendant to evacuate the five passengers on the train.

A spokesman said the fire brigade extinguished the flames that engulfed all three cars and no one was injured. The train suffered major damage.

A spokesman for German train operator Deutsche Bahn said that the train was operated by the private company Niederbarnimer Eisenbahn (NEB).

NEB, which operates the RB25 line between Berlin-Ostkreuz and Werneuchen, did not initially comment.

The railway station was closed between 22.00 and 12.30 during the firefighting operation, after which other tracks were opened to allow rail traffic to resume.

Germany’s Federal Police, whose responsibilities include the railway network, also said the cause of the fire was unknown and no clues had been found in the preliminary investigation.

The Federal Bureau of Railroad Accident Investigation is preparing to inspect the train before it is transported.

rc/msh (AFP, dpa)