Basel station closed and evacuated after train derails


The Hamburg-Zurich ICE train came off the rails at around 5pm.
(Keystone)

Basel train station remained partially closed on Wednesday evening following the derailing of a German ICE train bound for Zurich. No injuries were reported.

Three carriages of the train, which had come from Hamburg earlier in the morning, came off the rails while switching tracks in Basel’s main station. The 500 passengers on board were evacuated, and city authorities said there no inuries.

In derailing, however, the train damaged an electric pylon and caused a power cut throughout the area. As a result, the entire station was initially closed and various trains cancelled, according to Swiss Federal Railways (SBB).

Although the disruption continued, several regional lines were reopened later in the evening, while France-bound trains ran as normal.

The station in Basel links the city to the nearby airport of Basel-Mulhouse, as well as acting as a transit point for those moving between Switzerland and bordering France and Germany. According to SBB it is Europe's largest border station.

Earlier this year, a derailing in the railway station of Lucerne in central Switzerland caused chaos for many Swiss – who are heavy commuters – when it was closed for several days.

https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/accident_basel-station-closed-and-evacuated-after-train-derails/43715540