On the night of this Tuesday, a passenger train collided with a freight train in northern Greece; one of the wagons went up in flames. The accident leaves at least 29 fatalities and 85 people are seriously injured.
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The incident occurred in Tempe, when a passenger train derailed following colliding with a commercial train shortly following 11 p.m.
According to CNN, the passenger train, with 350 passengers on board, ran on the route Thessaloniki – Larissa and left at 07:22. Three of his carriages derailed.
The authorities deployed a huge rescue operation with police officers, 40 firefighters and some 30 ambulances were transferred to the scene to help the dozens of injured, according to the local media Onlarissa.
The affected people, on the other hand, are being treated in the two hospitals in Larissa.
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A shocking image from above unveils the horror of tonight’s #traincrash in #Greece. Two trains found themselves in the same track with devastating consequences for the passenger train. At least 15 people were killed & more than 60 were injured. The rescue operations are ongoing. pic.twitter.com/1SUkSqoTQo
— Makis Mylonas (@MylonasMakis) March 1, 2023
Users on social networks have shared shocking images of the tragic accident.
According to the ‘ANA’ press agency, the fire was brought under control overnight by firefighters, who estimate that, in addition to “dozens of injuries, several people were found unconscious and dead.”
Lazos, a passenger questioned by the Protothema newspaper, declared: “We have experienced something very shocking.” “I’m not hurt, but I’m stained with the blood of other people who were hurt next to me,” he said.
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train crash in #Greece. Firefighters work to extinguish a fire and free people trapped in the trains. The accident occurred on the Thessaloniki-Larissa route near the Evangelismos district.
There are no reports of fatalities at the moment. pic.twitter.com/QdMzYowkfs
— Antisana Media Online (@AntisanaNews) February 28, 2023
Hypothesis regarding the facts
According to the Greek TV channel SkyTwo possible causes have been put forward for the train accident. At first, the possibility is considered that it was a human error that resulted in the circulation of two trains on the same track, or, on the other hand, the derailment of a train that collided with the other train on the opposite track.
Konstantinos Agorastos, governor of the wider Thessaly region, also told the network that 250 survivors were evacuated to Thessaloniki in buses.
Police took the names of the survivors as they arrived in an effort to track down anyone who might be missing.
On the other hand, according to the media Algeriaan emergency government meeting was arranged following the accident and Greek health minister Thanos Plevris attended the scene.
In Greece, 32 people died in a train crash. A passenger train collided head-on with a freight train.
85 people were injured. The number of dead and wounded is not definitive. pic.twitter.com/zSGjP0TUm8
— Citizen of the World ♥️???????? (@ilmondoeditutti) March 1, 2023
Hours later, the balance delivered by the fire brigade initially indicated that the disaster left more than 30 people dead.
“So far 32 bodies have been recovered,” Vassilis Vathrakogiannis, a spokesman for the Fire Service, was quoted as saying by Greek broadcaster ERT.
This is a provisional balance, since the firefighters estimate that among the remains of the third passenger car, where they have recovered the last two lifeless bodies, there are still a dozen corpses.
Of the 85 injured who were taken to hospitals, 25 are in serious condition, while a total of 53 remain in treatment and the rest have been discharged.
ELTIEMPO.COM
*With information from AFP and EFE
