At least three people were killed and several others injured when a regional passenger train derailed in a wooded area in southwestern Germany on Sunday, police said.
No fewer than 100 passengers were aboard the train when the accident occurred at around 6:10 pm (1610 GMT) near the town of Riedlingen in Baden-Wuerttemberg state.
Contacted by AFP, police initially stated that four people had been killed before correcting their statement to three victims.
Authorities, however, declined to elaborate on the number of injured or how seriously hurt they were, though tabloid Bild cited emergency workers saying there were 50 injured.
German rail operator Deutsche Bahn confirmed several deaths and numerous injuries after two train carriages derailed “for reasons yet unknown.”
Authorities are currently investigating the circumstances of the accident, and traffic has been suspended over a 40-kilometre (25-mile) stretch of the route.
German media reported that a landslip may have caused the accident as severe storms swept through the region, according to weather services.
The passenger train was heading from Sigmaringen, Germany, to Ulm when it derailed in a woodland.
In a social media statement, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz extended his sympathy to the families of those deceased.
He also stated that he was in frequent contact with both the interior and transport ministers and had instructed them to “provide the emergency services with all the support they need.”
Footage from the accident scene showed yellow and grey train cars lying on their sides as firefighters and emergency personnel attempted to reach the passengers.
According to local television station SWR, helicopters came quickly after the accident to carry the injured to nearby hospitals, and emergency doctors were notified.
Passengers frequently blame German transit for its old infrastructure, which results in frequent train delays and other technical issues.
The government has planned to invest several hundred billion euros over the next few years, primarily to update infrastructure.
In June 2022, a train derailed at a Bavarian Alpine resort in southern Germany, killing four people and wounding many others.
Germany’s deadliest rail accident occurred in 1998, when a high-speed train operated by the state-owned Deutsche Bahn derailed near Eschede, Lower Saxony, killing 101 people.
