THREE PEOPLE WERE killed and another 41 were injured when a train derailed in southern Germany yesterday. 

Investigators believe heavy rainfall likely caused a sewage shaft to overflow, which resulted in a landslide that derailed the regional train. 

More than 100 people were aboard the Deutsche Bahn train when at least two carriages derailed on Sunday evening in a forested area near Riedlingen, about 160km west of Munich.

The train’s 32-year-old driver, a 36-year-old apprentice and a 70-year-old passenger were killed, police said today.

Some of the 41 injured were seriously hurt.

Police said the downpours in the area caused a sewage shaft to overflow, likely triggering the landslide of an embankment where the derailment occurred.

There was no evidence of an external influence that could have caused the derailment, police said.

Photos from the scene showed parts of the train on its side as rescuers climbed atop the carriages.

“Such pictures shake us to the core,” Deutsche Bahn CEO Richard Lutz said, offering his condolences to the victims’ families.

He pledged full support for the effort to clear up the cause.