Greece Declares Three Days of National Mourning After Train Crash

The Greek flag on the Hellenic Parliament waving at half-mast in sign of mourning of the lives lost in the fatal train crash in Tempi, Central Greece, on late Tuesday.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis declared three days of national mourning on Wednesday, after visiting the site of a fatal train crash in Tempi, Central Greece, which left at least 46 passengers dead and dozens injured.

Mitsotakis said the head-on collision which took place late on Tuesday, between a passenger train and oncoming cargo train was an “unspeakable tragedy”.

Rescue teams, the fire brigade and the army are continuing efforts to locate and evacuate survivors after the high-speed crash left both trains and cars in flames.

Seventy-two people are currently being treated in hospitals, six in intensive care and many still remain unaccounted for. A list of injured passengers was published earlier today.

Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis speaking to the media after visiting the site of a fatal train crash in Tempi, Central Greece.

“One thing I can guarantee: We will find out the causes of the tragedy and we will do everything in our power so that something like this never happens again,” said Mitsotakis during an inspection visit accompanied by Transport Minister Kostas Karamanlis.

Rail operator Hellenic Train confirmed that approximately 350 passengers mostly university students were traveling on board the train from Athens to Thessaloniki.

Greek Transport minister announces resignation

On Wednesday afternoon, Karamanlis announced that he was resigning from his post “out of respect to the memory of the people who left so unjustly” and “to take responsibility for the timeless mistakes of the Greek state and political system”. His resignation was accepted by PM Mitsotakis.

EU expresses condolences

In Brussels, flags have been lowered at half-mast. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen expressed her condolences. “My thoughts are with the people of Greece after the terrible train accident that claimed so many lives last night near Larissa. The whole of Europe is mourning with you. I also wish for a speedy recovery for all the injured,” she said via her twitter account.

Οι σημαίες μας κυματίζουν μεσίστια σήμερα, πενθούμε μαζί με τους Έλληνες φίλους μας τιμώντας την μνήμη των θυμάτων του τραγικού ατυχήματος.

Η Ελλάδα δεν είναι μόνη της. Η ΕΕ βρίσκεται στο πλευρό σας. pic.twitter.com/r72b7WXptT

— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) March 1, 2023

European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety Stella Kyriakides said she had contacted Greek Health Minister Thanos Plevris today and pledged the EU’s support. “Our thoughts are all with you, the victims and their families. The EU is ready to provide whatever support is needed.”

An official investigation into the causes of the Tempi train crash has been launched and several railway officials are already being questioned. Meanwhile, the stationmaster has been arrested. According to local media reports, the two trains were traveling at high speed on the same track.

Hellenic Train: all routes for Wednesday are canceled.

Hellenic Train expressed its “deep sorrow for the tragic accident”, adding that staff were “working from the first moment on the ground in full cooperation with the competent authorities, offering the maximum possible support to the families of the victims, the injured and all passengers”.

The company announced that all routes for today (Wednesday) have been canceled.

“We inform the passenger public that all Hellenic Train itineraries today, Wednesday 1/3/2023, are cancelled, with effect from 12.00pm,” the company said.

Meanwhile, the National Blood Donation Center is appealing to citizens to help by donating blood at the nearest public hospital blood drive listed here.

The Tempi collision is the worst rail accident in Greece. In 1968, two trains collided in Derveni Corinthia killing 34 passengers and leaving more than 100 injured.

According to the non-profit Mediterranean Institute for Investigative Reporting (MIIR) citing data from the European Union Agency for Railways (ERA) and the safety reports of the Greek Regulatory Authority for Railways (RAS), Greece is ranked first in the EU for the number of deaths caused by rail accidents (2018 data). Based on MIIR data, railway accidents in Greece have resulted in 137 deaths between 2010 and 2018 mostly due to unguarded crossings, poor infrastructure and ineffective traffic management.

Moreover, the European Commission last month decided to refer Greece to the Court for failing to fulfil its obligations under the Single European Railway Area Directive (2012/34/EU).

The directive specifies that Member States had to ensure that a contractual agreement between the national competent authority and the railway infrastructure manager was concluded by 16 June 2015 at the latest, and published within one month.

Despite exchanges between the Commission and Greece, the national authorities have still not signed and published the contractual agreement with the Greek railway infrastructure manager, OSE.

The obligation to conclude and publish contractual agreements between national competent authorities and railway infrastructure managers is an important element of the Single European Rail Directive.

These agreements cover all aspects of infrastructure management, the Member State’s financial obligations, efficiency requirements for the infrastructure manager, reporting obligations, and rules for dealing with emergency situations and major disruptions to operations.