After the death of a cyclist in Berlin, climate protection activists are criticized for their road blockade. A clearing vehicle therefore arrives later at the scene of the accident. A fire brigade report now contradicts the emergency doctor, who found this unnecessary.
The Berlin fire brigade has presented its final report on the accident involving a cyclist whose rescue is said to have been hampered by climate protests. The report is available to the Berlin Senate Administration, as spokesman Thilo Cablitz said on request on Wednesday. Like other documents, it will be made available to the public prosecutor. Cablitz warned against jumping to conclusions. “The complex facts must be worked through in their entirety by the public prosecutor’s office as part of the investigation.” He did not provide any further information.
Like the “B.Z.” reported, according to the forecast, a special vehicle would have arrived at the scene of the accident just one minute after the emergency doctor. But the so-called rescue vehicle was stuck in traffic and only arrived at 8.45 a.m. – when firefighters had freed the critically injured 44-year-old. One of the cyclist’s legs was trapped between the concrete mixer’s twin wheels. “If the rescue vehicle had arrived in time, those responsible on site would have had further options for action,” the newspaper quoted from the report.
Instead, the cement mixer had to roll over the accident victim again, the “Tagesspiegel” quotes the paper as saying. The newspaper describes this as a “method for situations in which nothing else works”, but it is not recommended. Experienced rescuers advised against it. The fire brigade rules stipulate that a rescue vehicle would have been necessary.
The “Süddeutsche Zeitung” had previously reported that the emergency doctor had decided not to lift the truck, regardless of the traffic jam, because the victim could be freed quickly. The Berlin fire department said there were several perspectives. In addition to the doctor, the overall operations manager and the technical consultant also commented. The cyclist was run over by a cement mixer on October 31 and later died. Because the fire department’s special vehicle was stuck in a traffic jam after a climate protest, the “Last Generation” group was sharply criticized.