Monday, June 3
Tree falls over in Mauerpark, three injured
Mauerpark is a popular destination for Berliners at any time of the week, but on a sunny Sunday afternoon when the flea market is running, the green patch in Prenzlauer Berg can get really crowded. Perhaps this is why a spokesperson for the Berlin fire bridge described the accident which took place on Sunday as “Glück im Unglück” meaning luck in bad luck. In other words, it could have been worse.
The tree which was blown over by strong winds in Mauerpark on Sunday stood very close to the flea market. If it had blown the other way, many more people would have been injured. In the end, three people suffered injuries as a result of the accident, with one person taken to hospital following a head injury described as “serious, but not life threatening”.
When the fire department first received the emergency calls, the situation appeared dire and they warned emergency services to prepare for a “mass influx of injured people”. 60 personnel were deployed, as well as a rescue helicopter and a fire department crane. In the end, the deployment of that size was not necessary, as no one was trapped beneath the fallen tree.
