LATHEN, Germany (Sept. 22) - A high-speed magnetic train traveling at nearly 125 mph crashed Friday in northwestern Germany, killing at least 25 people in the first fatal wreck involving the high-tech system, officials said.
The train, which runs primarily as a demonstration by its manufacturer, was carrying at least 29 people when it struck a maintenance vehicle with carrying two workers on the elevated track. Mangled wreckage hung from the 13-foot-high track, with seats and other debris strewn below.
Police spokesman Martin Ratermann put the death toll at 25 after a search of the crash site, about a half-mile from the station at the village of Melstrup. Officials also reported 10 people were injured but they did not immediately reconcile the discrepancy in the numbers.
The train runs four days a week on the 20-mile test track between Doerpen and Lathen near the Dutch border. The maintenance car was regularly used to check and clear the elevated tracks of branches and other debris.
