Bird causes short circuit, halts train traffic near St. Pölten

Train services in and around St. Pölten, Austria, were significantly disrupted overnight due to an unusual incident involving a bird. The disruption, which lasted for about five and a half hours, began on Sunday evening when a bird became entangled in scaffolding near the railway lines, triggering a short circuit.

The incident occurred around 9:00 PM on Sunday. ÖBB, Austria's national railway company, confirmed the report, stating that the bird's contact with the scaffolding caused a power failure. This led to the immediate suspension of train traffic in the affected area as technicians worked to locate and rectify the damage.

During the outage, a Railjet train that had been stranded was eventually pulled into the St. Pölten station by a diesel locomotive. Passengers were able to disembark approximately 40 minutes later. For other travelers, a rail replacement service was established between St. Pölten and Prinzersdorf, with an additional shuttle service operating between St. Pölten and Tullnerfeld station to connect with long-distance services.

Services were fully restored around 1:30 AM on Monday after the damage was repaired. The incident highlights the unexpected challenges that can impact critical infrastructure, even from seemingly minor events. While the disruption caused significant delays and inconvenience, the swift response from ÖBB ensured that services were resumed within a reasonable timeframe.

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A bird got caught in scaffolding and caused a short circuit.