Twenty-seven injured in serious tram crash in north Berlin

Two trams collided head first on Thursday morning in the Prenzlauer Berg district of Berlin, leaving 27 people with injuries and leading to suspensions on two lines.

Published: 29 June 2017 14:09 CEST

Twenty-seven injured in serious tram crash in north Berlin

The crash site in Prenzlauer Berg. Photo: DPA

“Not many of the injuries were serious,” a fire services spokesperson said in a statement.

But both drivers had to be transported to hospital after the crash which took place shortly before midday. Initial reports suggested that several people had been seriously injured, but these turned out not to be true.

@straßenbahnunfall @prenzlauerberg, zwei Züge entgleist pic.twitter.com/PJS8FQ2Qem

— Berliner Feuerwehr (@Berliner_Fw) June 29, 2017

What caused the accident, which took place on the corner of Prenzlauer Allee and Danziger Strasse, has still not been confirmed.

But it seems that one of the trams came out of its tracks in the moments leading up to the crash.

According to Tagesspiegel it is possible that a switch had malfunctioned. But it is also possible that an object in the track derailed the vehicle.

The crash left the M10 tram line between Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportplatz und Danziger Strasse with no service. The M2 has also been suspended.

“Once all injured passengers have been cared for, and once the site of the accident has been cleared, services will resume,” the Berlin Transport Company (BVG) tweeted.