Many more injured in German train collision

At least 35 people were reported hurt, four of them sustaining grave injuries, as two cars of a passenger train tipped over following its collision with a freight train on Friday night near the city of Mannheim in the southwest of Germany, AFP news agency reported on Saturday.

At least 12 reported hurt after two trains collide in Germany’s southwest

Previous reports assessed the number of injured in the accident at 12.

The two tipped-over cars of the Eurocity speed train en route from Austria’s Graz to Germany’s destination of Saarbruecken on border with France carried a total of 110 passengers at the time of the accident, which took place at around 19:00 GMT near Mannheim’s main station.

According to various reports, the accident did not result in graver consequences, in terms of human casualties, as the trains moved slowly at the time of their collision near Mannheim’s station, which is also one of the country’s major railway junctions.

AP news agency reported citing Germany’s national railway, Deutsche Bahn, that a total of five cars of the passenger train derailed with two of them tipping over and the emergency services evacuated approximately 250 people from the train following its collision with the freight train.

German railways to use mini drones against graffiti

Germany’s railway operator plans to deploy mini drones to catch vandals who deface its trains with graffiti, with the aerial vehicles shooting thermal images of its train depots at night.

Deutsche Bahn plans to soon start testing the vehicles which have four helicopter-style rotors and can shoot high-resolution pictures.

“We are going to use this technology in problem areas, where taggers are most active,” a spokesman who asked not to be named told AFP.

A “pilot” remotely steers the vehicles at heights of up to 150 metres (500 feet) and speeds of up to 54 kilometres (33 miles) per hour. An operator evaluates the images, which the company plans to use as evidence.

Deutsche Bahn said it suffered property damage last year worth 7.6 million euros ($10 million) from people spray-painting its carriages.

The rail operator said it would only use the drones over its own depots, not in public areas, in line with German anti-surveillance laws.

Internet giant Google ran into problems in Germany when it filmed streets for its global Street View project, with thousands of residents complaining and Google being forced to blur many of the images. – AFP