Sabotage suspected as parked vehicle is found immobile by police officers
Fire on North-South Railway Line Disrupts Train Traffic in North Rhine-Westphalia
A fire that is suspected to be a case of sabotage has disrupted train traffic on the North-South railway line in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The incident occurred in the Düsseldorf city area, according to a railway spokesman.
The fire broke out in a cable duct of the railway line, causing significant disruptions to train traffic. The fire has paralyzed the railway route, and authorities expect the disruptions to continue until Friday afternoon.
Initial efforts to extinguish the fire were made by railway employees before the arrival of the fire brigade. The fire was quickly contained and extinguished by the fire brigade.
The fire has affected travel to Düsseldorf Airport, which is located between the two main stations. As a result, a shuttle bus service has been established as an alternative for passengers between Düsseldorf Airport, Duisburg Central Station, and the main stations of the two cities.
The S1, as well as the RE2, RE3, and RE11, have started and ended prematurely, and the stops between Düsseldorf and Duisburg are omitted. The ICE lines to Berlin and Frankfurt am Main, as well as connections in the direction of Northern Germany, Southern Germany, and the Netherlands, are affected by the disruptions.
The entire area around Duisburg-Großenbaum in the south of the Ruhr area is not passable. The cables damaged in the fire will need to be replaced over a length of 60 meters, making the repair process more complex than initially anticipated due to the discovery of two additional damaged cables.
The regional trains RE1, RE5, RE6, and RE19 are being rerouted. Long-distance traffic is being partially rerouted via Dortmund and Wuppertal - and vice versa.
The state protection is investigating the incident from all angles, and a claim of responsibility was published on the left-wing platform Indymedia, purportedly by a group called "Commando Angry Birds". An ignition device was placed in the cable tunnel by unknown individuals, causing the fire.
However, it is worth noting that there are no recent or relevant search results reporting any rail traffic disruptions or sabotage incidents on the North-South line in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The search results focus mainly on rail service delays and disruptions in other locations such as New Jersey, Singapore, and Washington DC metro systems, but do not mention North Rhine-Westphalia or any sabotage-related issues there.
Therefore, based on the available information, the current status of rail traffic in North Rhine-Westphalia appears normal with no publicly reported disruptions due to sabotage on the North-South line. If this incident had occurred recently and caused disruption, it is not reflected in the provided search results as of August 6, 2025.
[1] Search Result 1 [2] Search Result 2 [3] Search Result 3 [4] Search Result 4 [5] Search Result 5
The fire incident on the North-South railway line in North Rhine-Westphalia, initially suspected to be sabotage, has not been reported in recent general news or crime-and-justice updates, contrary to search results focused on rail traffic disruptions in other regions. Despite the fire causing significant disruptions to transportation,including public-transit and major railway lines like the S1, RE2, RE3, RE11, and ICE connections, no recent vivid reports from the industry or finance sectors suggest economic or financial impacts. The search results do not hint at any sabotage activities within the transportation industry in North Rhine-Westphalia.
