ICE carriage door opens while traveling in Lower Franconia

While traveling through Lower Franconia at around 200 kilometers per hour, a carriage door on an ICE train opened for an unknown reason. The train driver immediately stopped the express train, the federal police said. The ICE 528 traveling from Munich to Dortmund came to a stop at the entrance portal of a tunnel near Karlstadt (Main-Spessart district). Nobody was injured. The DB ruled out a problem with the train and the federal police began immediate investigations.

The incident occurred on Tuesday evening. There were 238 travelers on board. There was no technical fault on the train, as a railway spokeswoman said. The DB did not comment on the question of whether someone on board the train could have opened the door intentionally. “Doors on the ICE do not simply open while driving,” said the short statement. “The specific cause is the subject of the investigating authorities.” Statements on further details will only be possible after the investigation has been completed.

The train driver had stopped his train in front of a tunnel near Karlstadt. The passengers were later able to get off in Lohr am Main. The federal police interviewed the passengers there and recorded their personal details. The officers also checked whether luggage had fallen off the train. The railway line was reopened around 2:30 a.m.

Because, according to the federal police, it could not initially be ruled out that someone had fallen from the train and been injured, a large contingent of federal and state police, fire departments and rescue services searched the route in front of the Schönrain Tunnel with drones, dog units, helicopters and thermal imaging technology. It was said that the search was difficult due to the impassable terrain and the darkness. Nobody was found. The route should be searched again in the morning.