After the tragic accident on the Ostring in Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen, there is disbelief in the community north of Karlsruhe. Five young people between the ages of 25 and 29 died in the collision on Saturday night.
Passers-by are dismayed
A few days after the accident, friends and relatives of the dead laid numerous flowers, pictures and candles at the accident site. On site, ka-news.de meets some passers-by and drivers slow down to take a look at the mourning site. “You actually only know something like this from the Autobahn,” says a local lady.
There is also a jersey from FC Alemannia Eggenstein with the number 93 on the back. Among the fatalities are two soccer players from FC Alemannia Eggenstein and the physiotherapist from the men’s team.
“FC Alemannia 05 Eggenstein is deeply saddened by the loss of its active football players Danny Zimmerer and Tim Paluschka, physiotherapist Leonie Burkart and Philipp Dommer. All four passed away much too early due to a tragic accident. We will miss them very much!”, writes the association on its website. There is also mourning on the FC Eggenstein Instagram page.
As a result of the serious accident, the Alemannia game – currently third in the A1 district of the Karlsruhe football club – was canceled last Sunday against FV Linkenheim. There was a minute’s silence before kick-off on numerous amateur sports fields in the region.
Mourning in the entire football district of Karlsruhe
It is not clear when Alemannia will start playing again. The Baden Football Association wants to give the club as much time as is necessary, explains Thomas Rößler, District Chairman of the Karlsruhe Football Association, in an interview with ka-news.de.
“It’s an unbelievable tragedy, we too are stunned,” says Rößler. He found out about the accident and its consequences on Saturday morning when those responsible at Alemannia informed him. “Our thoughts are with all relatives and friends. As outsiders, we can only imagine how difficult the current situation is.”
Accordingly, the current game operations in the A1 represent a “very small problem.” Other things are more important now,” Rößler continued. The association and club are in contact, although the association does not give any specifications or a deadline for continuation.
“We give the club and those responsible for as much time as they need,” says Rößler. As the district chairman further explains, other clubs that would be affected by possible game cancellations have signaled their willingness to move the games accordingly.
Clubs say goodbye
Condolences are also received from several clubs in the Karlsruhe football district on the football portal pfoschdeschuss.de. “FV Linkenheim mourns with the sports friends of FC Alemannia Eggenstein, as well as the families and all relatives. We are deeply shocked and our thoughts are with you!” It says, among other things.
In addition to the portal known among footballers, friends also say goodbye on social media and Karlsruhe clubs express their sympathy.
How did the accident happen?
While the Karlsruhe football club stands together and mourns together, many ask themselves why. How could the BMW and the large taxi collide in such a way?
“I have never experienced such a dimension in my 25 years as a firefighter,” says Dominik Wolf, commander and head of the Eggenstein volunteer fire brigade to ka-news.de. “The destruction was enormous and such an operation does not go unnoticed.”
On the night of the accident, Wolf was on duty until 7:30 a.m., including follow-up work. He does not want to talk about possible reasons for the accident. The only thing that is certain so far is that the car with the four young adults was on its way towards the L604 around 1 a.m. on Saturday. The taxi drove in the direction of Eggenstein. It is not yet clear why the driver of the car lost control.
No autopsy of the bodies
The police headquarters in Karlsruhe is also reluctant to provide new information. A spokesman only explains that the investigations of the Karlsruhe Traffic Police Inspectorate are being conducted in close cooperation with the Karlsruhe Public Prosecutor’s Office.
The two injured – who were in the taxi – are being treated in hospitals. An autopsy of the corpses was not ordered by the public prosecutor in Karlsruhe. The police left unanswered questions about the speed of the vehicles and whether alcohol or drugs were involved.
Tags: Community football club mourn people die accident Eggenstein
