Corona parties break out on packed Berlin subway trains

VIDEO has emerged of people ignoring social distancing rules and holding spontaneous “corona parties” on crowded Berlin subway trains late at night.

Footage shared extensively on social media showed a U-bahn carriage packed with young passengers dancing and singing along to loud music.

Some of the more adventurous passengers are climbing on the seats and hanging from the handrails.

Almost none of those visible is wearing a face mask, despite failure to wear one being punishable with a fine of up to €500 (£450).

“Thanks to everyone who was there yesterday. It was just f------ crazy and wild. You are Berlin,” a user who posted the footage to Instagram under the name Crazyandwildboy wrote.

“Unfortunately things got a bit out of hand. It would have been better to have worn a mask.”

The footage, later deleted, is believed to have been filmed on Friday. It is one of a number of similar videos doing the rounds on social media. Another, filmed more than a week ago, showed people dancing and chanting on a packed U-bahn station platform.

“It was a spontaneous thing. It happened by chance a week ago, more like a guerrilla action,” an unnamed participant in the earlier video told Bild newspaper. “Nobody said anything. The plan was to do it again on Friday, but this time only on the train because it was so much fun.”

A spokesman for Berlin’s BVG public transport company said: “Nothing was reported. If this video is new, then corona rules are being violated, and of course that’s unacceptable.”

There is growing concern that people are ignoring social distancing rules in Berlin. Police were out in force at the weekend enforcing distancing rules, and Dilek Kalayci, the regional health minister, threatened to ban the sale of alcohol in pubs and restaurants if they are not observed.

Police in France broke up an illegal rave in a remote mountain region at the weekend. Around 10,000 people were believed to have attended the event in the Cévennes national park, some of them accompanied by young children.