An U-Bahn train in Berlin was evacuated after a group of teenagers managed to take over the tail driver’s cabin and hijack the carriage.
A report from Berliner Zeitung has revealed that passengers travelling on a U2 U-Bahn train in Berlin were recently evacuated through a tunnel after a group of teenagers hijacked the driver's cabin at the end of the train.
While it was running the daytime route, the teens entered the tailing driver’s cabin and uncoupled the connecting carriage while the train was moving, which brought it to an immediate standstill in a tunnel.
All passengers then had to be evacuated through the tunnel. All services going in both directions on the route were suspended during the evacuation as traffic control staff had to turn off the high-voltage current for trains. The group of teenagers were detained following the evacuation.
According to an anonymous BVG employee interviewed by Berliner Zeitung, U-Bahn hijackings have become more common in the capital.
“It is an increasing problem,” the employee told the newspaper, claiming “people from outside the company have been gaining access to the driver’s cabin for a year now”.
Another anonymous employee told the paper that groups of teenagers had found keys needed to open the door to the driver's cabin. According to the employee, these groups of young people are often the same as those who attempt U-Bahn stunts, such as U-Bahn surfing.
Police say that it is difficult to say how many U-Bahn surfing incidents there are in Berlin each year. U-Bahn surfing accidents are not uncommon in the German city, with around 18 related deaths in the past six years. Anyone who is caught U-Bahn surfing faces a 50.000 euro fine.
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