Student accident in Munich: Ambulance hits 14-year-old!

Student accident in Munich: Ambulance hits 14-year-old!

A tragic incident occurred on October 24, 2025 in Munich-Hadern when a 14-year-old student was hit by an ambulance. The accident happened at 7:20 a.m. at the intersection of Waldwiesenstrasse and Drozzaweg, about 400 meters south of the A96, while the ambulance was on duty with flashing lights and a siren. The 25-year-old driver of the ambulance, who also occasionally works as a paramedic in the emergency medical service, was unable to prevent the collision when the girl suddenly stepped from a pedestrian crossing aid onto the road to cross in front of the vehicle.

The driver immediately applied the brakes, but there was not enough time to avoid the collision. The student fell and sustained injuries. After initial treatment on site, she was immediately transported to the hospital in another ambulance. Fortunately, the paramedic who was behind the wheel was uninjured, while the emergency vehicle sustained minor damage. The Munich traffic police have already started an investigation to clarify the exact cause of the accident.

Rescue operations in Munich

In light of this incident, it is interesting to look at the general situation of the public emergency services in Germany. A nationwide analysis of the level of performance in the emergency services, carried out on behalf of the Federal Highway Research Institute (BASt), shows a remarkable trend: Compared to the years 2016/2017, the number of operations due to traffic accidents has fallen and has reached an all-time low. According to the BASt report, traffic accidents accounted for 1.8 percent of emergency operations - around 130,000 per year.

In the period 2020/21, the public emergency service in Germany recorded around 16.1 million emergency trips and around 13.1 million missions. More than twice as many operations were registered in metropolitan city regions as in more rural areas. This shows how different the challenges for rescue workers are depending on the region. The deployments particularly often involved “other emergencies”, followed by internal emergencies and accidents in general.

Rescue vehicles in use

Statistically speaking, ambulances are used in 55.8 percent of operations. Another aspect that is highlighted in the BASt analysis is the average help period, which is 8.7 minutes on average across the country. 95 percent of the help deadlines were met in 16.2 minutes. This is particularly crucial because quick responses in emergency situations can save lives.

The current events in Hadern make it clear that not only statistics, but also personal fates play a role in the everyday life of the rescue service. The training of the emergency services, the equipment of the vehicles and close cooperation with the police and the medical service are indispensable elements in order to be able to react optimally in such a situation.

For the Munich traffic police, this incident has once again shown that there is often a mixed reality in road traffic: While the statistical decline in traffic accidents shows positive aspects, the consequences for individuals, as in the case of the 14-year-old student, are always tragic and call for caution.