The Greek Prime Minister, the conservative Kyriakos Mitsotakis, said yesterday that the collision of trains that (according to Thursday morning’s balance sheet) caused at least 42 deaths in central Greece was a “tragic human error”. In a statement to the country, after visiting the scene of the accident, he revealed that he still ordered the establishment of a committee of experts to investigate what happened so that “never again” a tragedy like this one happens. Three days of national mourning were declared.
The accident, unprecedented in the country and the most serious in Europe since that in Santiago de Compostela (which killed 80 people in 2013)took place just before midnight on Tuesday when a train with 342 passengers and ten crew members on board, making the connection between Athens and Thessaloniki, took the wrong track and several kilometers later collided head-on with a freight train traveling in the opposite direction with two crew members. sail.
The first two carriages of the passenger train were crushed and the third caught fire (the temperature reportedly reached 1300 degrees Celsius). Families provide DNA samples to help identify victims. Most were students, who had gone home for a long weekend for an Orthodox holiday. In addition to the 38 dead (and the number is expected to rise), there were 72 injured. Six are in critical condition.
“When something tragic like this happens, it’s impossible to go on and pretend nothing happened.Greek Transport and Infrastructure Minister Kostas Karamanlis said when announcing the resignation. He considered it his “duty” and “the least sign of respect for the memory” of the at least 42 people who died “unjustly” .
Police arrested the Larissa station chief and charged him with negligent homicide, but according to Reuters, he denied any responsibility and pointed to a possible technical glitch. The trade associations also hastened to say that the employee is being used as a scapegoat and that the problems in this line have been known for years.
Kostas Karamanlis, who has the same name as a former prime minister (his second cousin), along with Mitsotakis, visited the crash site and said that in 2019 he inherited some railways that are not compatible with the 21st century. “In these three and a half years, we have done everything we can to improve this reality. Unfortunately, these efforts were not enough to prevent the accident. And this is very difficult for all of us and for me personally,” he said. In his letter of resignation, he “assumed responsibility for the shortcomings of the Greek state and political system over the years”.
In addition to the minister, other railway officials also resigned, with the prime minister promising that “justice will do its job” and “responsibilities will be assigned”. He also indicated that Secretary of State Georgios Gerapetritis will take on the Transport portfolio until July’s parliamentary elections. Several opposition leaders, including former Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras (of Syriza) and PASOK leader Nikos Androulakis, attended and the theme promises to enter the campaign.
Source: DN
