windows into the death-strip. They wanted to run through the death-strip and climb over the wall. The fact that the wall was topped with barbed wire wasn't something they worried about.

They started their plan early in the morning. The first shotguns fell 2pm. Helmut had managed to get over the wall while Peter was shoot and fell back to the death-strip of the east side. He stayed alive for hours but the West side didn't dared to help him. They only threw some bandages to him in regard to help him. Hours after the screams stopped the East side took Peter to hospital, where his dead was confirmed.

Helmut got over the wall alive.

unsucessfull escapes

A lot of people died as a direct consequence of the wall. One of those victims was Peter Fechter. He was born in 14th January 1944. At the age of 18 he and his friend, Helmut Kulbeik, wanted to flee.

Their plan was to hide in a carpenter workshop and jump out of one of these 

The wall

Before the rise of the Berlin Wall in 1961, 3.5 million East Germans wanted to show their opinions by crossing over the border to West Berlin. The wall is restricting almost all emigration. Numerous deaths were caused by the Berlin Wall, which is standing as a barrier between West Berlin and East Berlin since 13 August 1961. About 138 people died already as a direct consequence of the Berlin Wall. 100 East Germans refugees, who wanted to cross the border, were killed by themselves, injured or took their own lives. 30 people from East and West were killed without any intention to cross the border. The rest, about 8 people were killed by working in the service of GDR border guards by refugees, West Berlin police officer and their partners at the workplace by now.