Swan that lost its partner stops 23 trains in Germany for an hour

In Germany, a swan that had just lost its partner remained on a train track for nearly an hour. The grieving bird thus stopped 23 trains. The German police reported this today.

The facts date back to December 23rd. Two swans flew near the railway line between Kassel and Göttingen, in the center of Germany.

According to police, the female probably got entangled with her wings in the railway’s power cables and died in that way.

However, the male did not want to budge and stayed on the train track with his deceased partner. The fire brigade

made several attempts to get the animal off the tracks and eventually had to use special equipment to get both animals off the track.

The male was released into a river further on.

In total, 23 trains were delayed by almost an hour.

Ein trauernder Schwan hat den Zugverkehr zwischen Kassel und Göttingen durcheinander gebracht. Feuerwehrleute mussten den Vogel von den Gleisen wegbringen. Dort war zuvor ein anderer Schwan verendet. https://t.co/ffLgtsLmZ2

— Frankfurter Allgemeine gesamt (@FAZ_NET) December 28, 2020