Greece train collision kills at least 36
Noriko Watanabe and Chika Mori
Modern Tokyo Times
A train journey traveling from Athens to Thessaloniki in Greece turned deadly after a horrendous train collision with a freight train. Immediately, the front two carriages were engulfed by flames.
The death toll currently stands at 36. However, a small number are still in intensive care.
In the local hospital in Larissa, they stipulate that the majority of people killed are young adults.
Kostas Agorastos, the local Governor of the region of Thessaly, said, “They were traveling at great speed and one (driver) didn’t know the other was coming.”
The Governor continued, “This is a terrible night… It’s hard to describe the scene.”
Reports stipulate the passenger and freight trains were running on the same track. If so, an investigation is needed into how this happened.
The BBC reports, “Greek public broadcaster ERT reports that police have been speaking to a local station master – and prosecutors will decide whether or not he will be arrested.”
Various news sources also state that the railway system in this country needs modernizing. For example, many areas don’t have automatic control systems.
Reuters reports, “Many of the passengers would have been returning home after a long holiday weekend marking the beginning of Greek Orthodox lent. Thessaloniki has a large student population.”
Marina Rigou (a journalist from Greece) told the BBC, “The rescue teams are trying to move the wreckages of the carriages from the tracks, but it’s very difficult…The collision was so severe that the two first carriages just disappeared.”
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