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Terror drill to take place at Frankfurt central station on Tuesday evening

DPA/The Local
DPA/The Local - [email protected]
Terror drill to take place at Frankfurt central station on Tuesday evening
Federal police take part in a training at the Frankfurter Bahnhof in 2014. Photo: DPA

Travellers passing through the Frankfurter Hauptbahnhof on late Tuesday evening might be a bit fearful upon hearing rippling explosions in the train station. They don’t need to be afraid though, as the blasts are part of a police drill held in preparation for a potential terror attack.

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Tracks 18 to 24 in the north part of Frankfurt's main train station will be affected, with trains directed to other parts of the station from 11pm to 5am on Wednesday morning. Deutsche Bahn employees will also be present to redirect travellers to the correct platform.

The police will be drilled on potential scenarios in the event of a terrorist attack, with several police and emergency vehicles parked on the premises of the station. Actors representing victims, with wounds applied by make-up artists, will also aid the exercise.

“Realistic exercises are indispensable and ultimately serve travellers as well as Germans,” said the German federal police in a statement, describing the “unfortunately unavoidable adverse side effects.”

Such dress rehearsals for a potential attack are not new for Germany. In March 2017, 360 German soldiers - alongside state and federal police - took to the streets of Saarbrücken in southwest Germany in riot gear for three days of drills.

The preparation - which aimed in part to strengthen communication between armed forces and police in the event of an attack - followed the December 2016 terror attack at a Berlin Christmas market, in which 12 people were killed and 57 injured.

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