Overview
- A large-scale drill at the Sandbergtunnel on Saturday, Aug. 8 simulated a burning ICE with about 100 role‑players and more than 250 emergency personnel but revealed major breakdowns in the alarm and response chain.
- First rescue teams did not reach the tunnel until about 2 hours and 7 minutes after the driver’s notruf, far longer than the planned 10–25 minute response window for tunnel incidents.
- Investigations have identified clear causes for the delays, including a slow transmission from the Deutsche Bahn control centre, a technical defect in a rescue control room, concurrent serious motorway accidents that tied up units, and altered deployment plans that increased travel times.
- Practical operational problems were also recorded: alarm messages were sent by fax between authorities, some population warnings via NINA/KATWARN did not fully work, and train doors could not be opened from the outside during the exercise.
- The Ilm‑Kreis, which organised and will evaluate the drill, is cooperating with state reviews while officials call for modernised alarm systems, unified command software, regular joint exercises, and clearer interagency procedures to prevent deaths in a real tunnel fire.