A tragedy was narrowly averted during a protest against coal mining in Germany when a train applied its emergency brakes to avoid two demonstrators who had chained themselves to the tracks.
The railcar almost ran over the two demonstrators, but the engine driver managed to bring it to a halt just 10 metres from them, a police spokesperson said on Monday.
The driver suffered shock after the incident.
Police detained at least 40 people who were taking part in the protest by the train tracks near Hambach Forest, an area of woodland earmarked for clearance by energy firm RWE for lignite-mining. Read more