Dozens of people were killed and injured in a collision between a freight train and a passenger train, but the cause of the fatal collision is still unknown, writes Reuters.
The intercity passenger train was on its way from Athens to Thessaloniki when it collided with a freight train at high speed near Larissa on the evening of Tuesday, the 28th of February. At least 32 people died in the head-on collision, and another 85 were injured. The impact also caused a fire in part of the passenger carriages.
Passengers told the media that they heard a loud noise and immediately after that, the flames spread. The governor of the Thessaly region, Konstantinos Agorastos, told SKAI TV that the first four carriages of the passenger train derailed after the collision. The first two wagons were completely destroyed in the collision. According to him,
the trains were on the same tracks for an unknown reason, and none of the drivers knew that there was another one on the tracks.
About 250 passengers were evacuated by buses to Thessaloniki.
On the morning of Wednesday, the 1st of March, the Greek public broadcaster ERT aired footage showing rescuers searching for survivors with flashlights. A volunteer stated that the situation is tragic, there are survivors and injured as well as dead. The work is planned to continue until all the passengers of the train have been found.
Local media reports that there were about 350 passengers on the train. It left Athens at around 19.30 local time and rescuers received information about the collision shortly before midnight. The freight train was on its way from Thessaloniki to Larissa.
In 1972, 19 people died in a head-on collision between two trains near Larissa. Greece’s railway infrastructure is outdated and many places do not have automatic warning systems installed.