According to information supplied by the Mittelfranken Police Headquarters, the Swiss-registered river ship was sailing on the Main-Danube Canal en route to Budapest with 181 passengers and 49 crew.
Around 1:30 a.m. local time, it struck the bridge in Erlangen's Frauenaurach district near the Kriegenbrunn lock. A pair of bridges—one for cars, one for rail—are situated side by side with a gap in between. After the allision, Viking Freya was stuck under the two bridges.
The wheelhouse was completely destroyed, and the crew who were inside it were killed, a police spokesman said. They were Hungarian nationals, aged 33 and 49.
According to the Erlangen fire service, an alarm was received shortly before 2 a.m. Emergency services including several fire brigades, police, inland waterways lifeguard organisations and the German Agency for Technical Relief sent 200 responders. The two crew who died were trapped inside the demolished wheelhouse and had to be removed using special equipment.
Viking Freya passengers—mostly North Americans, including many retirees—were assembled in the ship's restaurant while arrangements were made for their evacuation.
Apart from the darkness, a major challenge was the fact the ship continued moving for some time. Eventually, a provisional landing stage was put in place, linking Viking Freya to the shore and a neighboring path.
Early Sunday all passengers and the remaining crew had been safely landed. Passengers were transported to the Frauenaurach Community Centre. Around 8:15 a.m. the rescue operation was completed.
The rail bridge, which carries the local Aurachtalbahn line, suffered no structural damage and the railway line has reopened. The Main-Danube Canal remains closed to shipping for the time being.
The cause of the accident is being investigated by the police and local attorney. Viking Freya and her sisters are equipped with retractable wheelhouses to allow them to sail under low bridges. Apparently, the wheelhouse was not retracted at the time of the incident. Further details were unavailable early Sunday.
The 135-metre Viking Freya was delivered by Neptun Werft in 2012.
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