the day after

Berlin, last night. While the city vibrates with everyday life heightened by pre – Christmas bustle, a truck crashes into a cram-packed Chrismas market right in the center of the City West, causing absolute havoc. At this point in time, officials report twelve dead and around fifty severly injured victims. What is also known by now, is, that the truck is owned by a polish freight forwarder. It was en route from the South of Germany back to Poland. Supposed to unload cargo in Berlin, pause, upload something else and head back home to Poland. The owner of the company has told the public, it’s his cousin driving this particular vehicle and he has last spoken to him on the phone yesterday around noon. Nothing seemed wrong and he swears, his cousin is not involved in terrorism. There were allegedly two men in the truck, one of whom was found dead in the driver’s cabin. The other one fled, some say he was captured by police shortly after and is being interrogated now.

I wish, it were just an accident. But knowing the height of curbstones on site, even an exhausted, underpaid and overworked truck-driver fallen asleep behind the wheel would be jumpstarted immediately, when suddenly bumping into and over them. How quickly one can then bring a huge truck to hold is a question, I can not answer.

Or else, maybe, it could have been an act of petty crime gone awfully wrong. A heated argument about a couple of ten packs of cigarrettes or something else, beetween a truck driver wanting to make a buck on the side and a seller, both unable to agree on conditions. While screaming at each other, the driver gets shoved, the truck is steered off the road and into the Christmas market and across the entire square, causing the ensuing fiasco.

Best, even, (if there is any good scenario with something like this at all) would be a technical error of some sort. A cause, that has nothing to do with human error or bad will. A blocked steering wheel, for instance… Aw, dream on, nlyart.

This morning, police releases all point toward an outcome, that will involve some sort of intention to cause this incident at will, an attack.

Don’t get me wrong, something like this to happen in Germany was almost overdue. But still, it will steer public discussion  into a direction, I actually don’t want to hear. I have to say, that the just elected new City Interior Senator Andreas Geisel made a real good public statement yesterday evening. Reminding folks to keep calm and not jump to quick conclusions. When asked, what he wants Berliners to do right now, he said: “Pause for a moment, but not change your life fundamentally. Such doings happen, such accidents, if it was an accident, happen. But a city in fear helps nobody.”

Right, Berliners, show your sympathy with those injured and the families having to bemoan their dead, express your shock and sorrow. But please, keep things in perspective, your head clear and your heart open.