It has been announced that two of the four crew members of the pleasure craft did not survive the collision with a 75 metre long barge. The cause of the accident is still unknown.
The accident site is located at the confluence of the Sacrow-Paretzer Canal and the Schlänitzsee. According to initial investigations, both boats were probably travelling on the canal towards Berlin when the collision occurred at the confluence.
The cargo ship rammed into the yacht, which was running under engine power, on the starboard side and tore a large hole in the ship's side. The pleasure craft immediately filled with water and sank to the bottom of the fairway. It has not yet been possible to establish why the sailing yacht did not swerve out of the way in time. In principle, she would have been obliged to do so at this point.
The Brandenburg police want to examine both boats and reconstruct the accident in order to clarify the exact causes of the collision and who was at fault. So far, the police have only been able to definitively rule out alcoholisation on the part of those involved in the accident.
The two surviving crew members were thrown from the ship on impact and escaped with minor injuries.
