Metro train derails at high speed in Hamburg, services suspended

A metro accident occurred in Hamburg on the evening of January 20 at Billstedt station, where an empty U2 line train derailed after entering a siding track at high speed and crashing into a buffer stop.

Three carriages left the rails, prompting an immediate suspension of service on the affected section of the line, according to BILD.

Preliminary findings indicate that the train entered the dead-end track at an excessive speed. The driver was hospitalised in a state of shock. No other injuries were reported, as the train was not carrying passengers at the time of the incident. However, Hamburger Morgenpost reported that one of the derailed carriages may have struck an oncoming train.

That train was carrying 172 passengers, all of whom were evacuated using emergency ladders and later transported away from the area by bus. Authorities said the affected stretch of the line will remain closed until the end of the day as the cause of the accident is investigated.

The Hamburg derailment comes just days after a deadly train collision in Spain. On January 18, two passenger trains collided in the city of Adamus, resulting in 41 fatalities. A further 39 people were injured, including 35 adults and four children, with 13 adults in intensive care. All injured passengers are being treated at hospitals across the Andalusia region, while 43 passengers remain unaccounted for.

The Spanish crash occurred when several carriages of an Iryo train travelling from Malaga to Madrid with about 300 passengers derailed and struck an Alvia service coming from Huelva in the opposite direction, which was carrying 184 passengers. In response to the tragedy, the Spanish government declared three days of national mourning.

By Tamilla Hasanova