Boat crashes into railway bridge linking Netherlands to Germany

By Janene Pieters on December 4, 2015 - 12:25
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Boat crashes into railway bridge between Netherlands and Germany (Photo: @WgSiFriesland/Twitter). (Boat crashes into railway bridge between Netherlands and Germany (Photo: @WgSiFriesland/Twitter))

The shipping traffic between northern Netherlands and Germany came to a standstill after a 112 meter long coaster crashed into the railway bridge near Weener, Germany on Thursday night. The ship is still stuck at the bridge, blocking the way for any water traffic. Rail traffic between Bad Nieuweschans, Groningen and Germany is also down, BNR reports.

Marie-Lou Gregoire of the Groningen Seaport told the broadcaster that the accident was caused by a "miscommunication". A train was coming and the bridge could not be lifted immediately, but the captain of the coaster kept going.

"The bridge was severely damaged", Gregoire said. "Our colleagues from the port authority are in close contact with the German port authorities. We have to take stock of the damage, there may be more debris in the water. And also because of the broken bridge, the situation can be dangerous and we must be careful."

A few dozen ships travel this route per week.

Rail manager Arriva deployed buses to replace the affected train traffic until further notice. More information can be found on their website.

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