15 August 1989 · Driving through · Hennigsdorf, Nieder Neuendorf and the Havel
ZIL truck overturned at Stolpe
A 28-year-old man drove a ZIL-131 truck through several gates at the Stolpe crossing until it overturned against another barrier.
Around midnight on 15 August 1989 a 28-year-old man drove a ZIL-131 truck (described in the source as 'Moskau SIL 131') at the Stolpe crossing on the northern edge of West Berlin.
He broke through the barrier at the pre-check area and flattened several passage gates.
The force of the impact against another barrier finally tipped the truck onto its side, and the escape attempt failed.
Sources
Whose account is this? Drawn from a press report and historical research.
Historians and memorials
Facts checked against the sources: September 2026
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Cite this page
Berlin Experiences, “ZIL truck overturned at Stolpe”, Berlin Wall Escapes, 2026, https://berlinwallescapes.com/escapes/zil-truck-stolpe-1989/ (accessed [date]).
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