Runaway cow stops express train in Germany
January 2, 2018
A cow caused hours of delays on a busy railway route in Germany and prompted a major police response early on Tuesday.
The animal was set to be slaughtered in the southwest town of Bühl when it escaped and found its way to the nearby train tracks. The route is a part of a vital railway that links the German city of Karlsruhe with the Swiss city of Basel.
An inter-city express (ICE) train driver was first to report the cow at around 5 am local time. The man halted the train to avoid hitting the animal.
German police shared a pre-dawn photo on Twitter, claiming it showed the cow on the tracks.
The police dispatched several patrols to the scene, but they were unable to drive the animal away.
"The cow positioned itself on the track and did not move," according to a spokesman.
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Eventually, a hunter was called in to shoot the animal, but not before 14 trains were delayed and three redirected during the two-hour disruption.
Over 250 trains, including key cargo transports, travel along the route every day.
dj/rc (dpa, AFP)