German railway company Deutsche Bahn blamed a pigeon for nationwide rail disruption last week, saying the bird appeared to have short-circuited an overhead electrical-supply wire, according to dpa. The weakened wire collapsed Friday on a main line in the western city of Duisburg as a packed intercity express passed. Deutsche Bahn said the bird had probably perched with one leg on a 15,000-volt wire and the other on a cable stay. Birds can normally perch on live wires without harm if they do not touch earthed supports. "We think this damaged the wire and it sheared when the train arrived," said the spokesman. The whole sector shut down for six hours, 200 trains were halted and it took 62 hours for trains all over Germany to catch up with delays. German transport police added that the charred body of a pigeon was found on the roof of the first electric locomotive at the scene.
