At least 40 dead after train crash 'like earthquake' with carriages left burning
At least 40 people have died and scores have sustained horrific injuries after two trains ploughed into each other in a horror head-on collision in Greece.
Gruelling efforts continued overnight under "very difficult conditions" to rescue those trapped inside the carriages that buckled off the track near a town called Tempi just before midnight last night.
Photographs from the scene showed a train derailed and laying on its side, while witnesses told of the cars turning into infernos as at least three erupted in flames on impact.
The station master, a 59-year-old man, has been arrested on suspicion of negligent manslaughter, negligent bodily harm, and dangerous interference with transport, according to Greece's national news agency. He has denied responsiblity, claiming there was a failure of an automated system which put trains on different tracks.
Greece's Transport Minister Kostas Karamanlis resigned just hours after the tragedy, saying it was his "duty" to step down as a mark of respect "for the memory of the people who died so unfairly".
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Cranes and rescuers wearing head lamps could be seen pulling pieces of mangled metal from the wreckage as they searched for survivors through the early hours, with the full extent of the damage apparent after sunrise.
As plumes of thick smoke snaked into the air, paramedics lead shell-shocked passengers from the scene and put them on waiting buses or ambulances to take them to nearby Larissa.
Witnesses at the aftermath of the crash near Tempe, Greece said a large fire had broken out (AP)Footage shared on social media revealed the severity of the fire that had engulfed the wagons.
A total of 130 people, including several children and students, were injured in the crash, 25 of them admitted to hospital in serious condition.
A crowd of firefighters search through the train for survivors (AP)The train had been travelling from Athens to Greece's second-largest city, Thessaloniki, which is known for its vibrant cultural life, including a carnival that was held over the weekend.
Rail operator Hellenic Trains said 350 people were on-board at the time.
Initial reports suggest the two trains may have been travelling along the same track at high speed.
The full extent of the damage was apparent by morning after a night of painstaking rescue efforts (Vaggelis Kousioras/AP/REX/Shutterstock)The impact of the crash is understood to have been so great that the front carriages of each train were almost entirely 'pulverised'.
Survivors have given harrowing accounts of hearing people in carriages further back "screaming and breaking windows" when the train tipped over.
One recalled hearing "people shouting: 'We are burning'" as the carriages became an inferno, while another said the collision "felt like an earthquake".
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A passenger is tended to by emergency workers (APOSTOLIS DOMALIS/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)They said others fought to free themselves after the passenger train buckled, slamming into a field next to the tracks near a gorge about 235 miles north of Athens where major highway and rail tunnels are located.
“We just heard a bang… the (train) car started spinning, before ending up sideways when we managed to exit,” one male passenger said.
“It was 10 nightmarish seconds with fire, you couldn’t see much from the smoke,” a second added.
A man stands beside a wreck of crumpled steel (Tzekas Leonidas/Eurokinissi via ZUMA Press Wire/REX/Shutterstock)Another witness-survivor recalled: "Suddenly we felt a big crash. We jumped forward. The windows were broken and a fire broke out."
"The collision was terrifying but we slowly got out," said another, who had been riding in the 5th carriage.
A woman on-board at the time added: "At the moment of the collision, we realized we were derailing. We were trying to hold onto something.
"The most serious injuries were in the first carriages and there were young children there."
She went on to thank the younger co-passengers for helping her to escape from the smoking carriage.
Speaking about the situation she faced when she got off the train, the woman said it was tragic: "The smoke was suffocating you in the 6th carriage let alone at the front."
Another eyewitness recounted a conversation he overheard over the radios when the train was delayed at Paleofarsala station, indicating that something was wrong.
The front carriages of each train have been almost entirely 'pulverised', according to local reports (Vaggelis Kousioras/AP/REX/Shutterstock)"When you hear the train driver talking to the ticket clerk saying 'Let's go wherever it goes' you know something is going to go wrong," he explained.
“I was in the fourth car that didn't derail. The three ones at the front were utterly destroyed" said a young man who was rescued.
Asked about his emotions he said he had been left terrified, adding: "We broke the window with the suitcase."
And when asked if he realized anything before the fatal incident occurred, he stated that he felt a sharp braking.
“Suddenly I saw sparks and flames on the sides of the windows and then a sudden stop. We all panicked. We broke the glass and faced chaos," he said.
The train was travelling from the capital, Athens, to Greece's second-largest city Thessaloniki (Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)Local media outlets have published images of some of those who narrowly escaped death on the tracks.
One man spoke to Tanea.Gr after the tragedy unfolded, bloodied with what looks like a head wound.
A number of young children were tragically among the fatal victims, as were students returning from Larissa and Athens to Thessaloniki University.
Nine of those killed worked for the train line.
One carriage appeared to be almost completely engulfed by flames
At least 50 people have been injured on board the passenger trainAs of 10am this morning, there were 40 confirmed fatalities though the grim tally is expected to continue to rise dramatically throughout the day. Seven of the deceased were found burned to death.
Another 130 victims were injured, 66 of whom have been admitted to hospitals in Larissa, Katerinis and Thessaloniki, according to ertnews.gr.
And what is even more concerning is that the death toll would appear to be just the tip of the iceberg, as up until 9am, only the third carriage had been searched, the site adds.
One survivor described seeing sparks on the train before it came to a sudden halt (Vaggelis Kousioras/AP/REX/Shutterstock)An enormous emergency response was seen in aerial footage this morning, showing the whirring red lights of fire engines beside a derailed carriage that is battered and burnt.
The fire-charred car had launched off the tracks completely, with another left balancing between the rails and the left bank.
A massive crowd of rescue workers stand to the left of the disconnected wagon as others waded through the aisles, searching for more victims.
About 350 passengers were on board at the time of the collision (AP)There are 150 fire fighters operating at the crash site, including EMAK and forest operations units, as well as 17 vehicles and four crane trucks - which are being used to move entire carriages.
Thirty ambulances have been taking the injured to nearby hospitals, where some are in critical condition and some may need amputations, local media reported.
Another 270 people who sustained only minor injuries or were left unharmed have been taken by bus to Thessaloniki, which is located around 80 miles north from the crash site.
A Greek Orthodox priest at the crash site in Larissa (Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)A teen survivor coming off one of the evacuation services told reporters that he had felt a strong braking and saw sparks on the train before it came to a sudden stop.
Groups of anxious relatives are said to have waited in hope for their loved ones to leave the buses, with some heading to hospitals in the area if they could not find them.
At Larissa General Hospital, the tragic process of identifying the crash's fatal victims is currently underway.
Meanwhile, some families embraced tightly as they were reunited with their loved ones at a train station in Thessaloniki, which is home to thousands of students.
Cranes were brought in to move entire carriages from the crash site (ACHILLEAS CHIRAS/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)One anxious mother was concered her "child is not picking up the phone", as another ran to hold her daughter as she disembarked from a bus for survivors.
"Mum don't, I'm hurt", the woman said as her mum hugged her.
A man, who was travelling in one of the last carriages, told reporters when he disembarked how he remembered the train shake and then flip over.
A survivor with a head injury revealed details of the horror crash (Proto Thema/Youtube)"I managed to get out and went to the front, the train was bent at a 90 degree angle, half of it was hanging over the cliff burning," he said.
Other families have been left in a nerve-wracked limbo as they await news of their relatives who had been on board.
In one harrowing story, a woman told how her 23-year-old cousin had been on the phone to his mum at around 11pm last night when the line suddenly went dead.
Others had a panic-driven morning as they awaited news of their loved ones (Giannis Papanikos/AP/REX/Shutterstock)He reportedly told his mother, "Mum, the train is very crowded, I've never seen so many people on a train, I'll call you when we get there. To come and get me" - when the line abruptly cut out.
The young man's phone has been off ever since and his name isn't included on the list of the dead nor the rescued.
His distraught mother has been at Larissa since dawn, trying to find any news or information about her son and his condition.
Members of the police and armed forces joined the emergency response at the crash, and a major road located next to it has been closed to allow emergency vehicles access to the location.
The cause of the crash is yet to be determined (Giannis Papanikos/AP/REX/Shutterstock)A statement from Hellenic Trains said: "At Evangelismos there was a head-on collision between two trains: a freight train and train IC 62 which had departed from Athens to Thessaloniki."
"About 350 passengers were on board at the time of the collision. Firefighters and Hellenic Train staff rushed to the scene, participating in rescue operations and providing assistance to travelers."
In Greece, investigators have just two days to probe the circumstances surrounding the collision and to deliver a verdict for its cause.
The accident has been caused, no doubt, by human error, Greek publication Makedonia asserted today.
Railway staff have been questioned but no arrests have been made yet (Giannis Papanikos/AP/REX/Shutterstock)The two trains were supposed to be riding on different lines, but somehow ended up on the single track, each heading in a different direction.
But railway executives have clarified that it's not the drivers who decide to change the line the carriages are riding along, but the stationmaster, reports Makedonia.
Greece's Minister of Health Thanos Pleuris is travelling to hospitals that have taken in victims from the crash, while the Secretary General of the Ministry of Transport Giannis Xifaras is to visit the site of the collision.
Another crash survivor speaking of his ordeal (Proto Thema/Youtube)Costas Agorastos, the regional governor of the Thessaly area, told local television that the crash was “very powerful” and said it had been “a terrible night.”
“We’re getting cranes to come in and special lifting equipment clear the debris and lift the rail cars", he said, adding that there is "debris flung all around the crash site.”
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has been informed of the incident and a planned visit to Thessaloniki on Thursday has been cancelled.
Greece's Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, second left, visits the crash site today (Dimtiris Papamitsos/AP/REX/Shutterstock)He announced a three-day period of national mourning for the victims, from March 1 until March 3, which will see flags fly at half-mast on all public buildings and the suspension of all festivities.
Meanwhile, Greece's president Katerina Sakellaropoulou cut short an official visit to Moldova to visit the crash site, adding that rescue workers were doing all they could to help those killed and injured by the "death train".
Train services in the area have been severely disrupted on Wednesday morning, with multiple cancellations and lines closed.
At least two breakdowns had been reported on the Greek railway network on Tuesday, coming in addition to many ongoing issues with signalling and ageing infrastructure.
Two rail officials were questioned by police in the hours following the crash but had not been detained.
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