Leiferde/Marl (dpa/lnw) - After the collision of two freight trains in the Lower Saxony district of Gifhorn, travelers from North Rhine-Westphalia must continue to expect train cancellations and delays. As long as explosive propane gas is still escaping, the scene of the accident cannot be cleared, said a spokesman for the federal police. "Any spark could cause a catastrophe." The factory fire brigade from Marl wanted to advise on how to proceed on Friday. Specialists from the chemical park in the Ruhr area and experts from the Federal Office for Railway Accident Investigation examined the scene of the accident.

The busy route between North Rhine-Westphalia and Berlin is affected. If you wanted to take the ICE from NRW towards the capital, you had to expect diversions and delays of around 60 minutes. The freight trains of two private railway companies collided around 25 kilometers from Wolfsburg near Leiferde early Thursday morning. One of the trains had stopped at a corresponding signal, the second train drove up for an initially unclear reason. Two of its 25 tank wagons filled with propane gas overturned and two more derailed.