Athena, Europe Brief News – At least 32 people were killed and dozens more were injured when two trains have collided in northern Greece late Tuesday.
The incident occurred when a passenger train carrying more than 350 people collided with a freight train on Tuesday evening, shortly before midnight, in Tempi, central Greece, near the city of Larissa.
One of the carriages is said to have been crushed completely and a fire broke out.
Rescuers worked through the night at the crash scene near the city of Larissa. At least 150 firefighters with 17 vehicles and 40 ambulances have been deployed to the scene of the disaster in a search for more passengers who could still be trapped in the wreckage.
Authorities said about 250 passengers who survived the crash unarmed or with minor injuries were transported by bus to Thessaloniki.
At least 32 people were killed while 25 people were transported to nearby hospitals with serious injuries.
The head of a railway union has told local media he isn’t sure how the accident could have happened.
Yannis Ditsas, president of the Panhellenic Federation of Railway Workers, told ERT despite 40 years of experience, he cannot say whether the mistake was made on the ground or on the train.
He added the only consolation was that the crash did not happen inside tunnels nearby.
The incident is the deadliest rail crash to occur in Greece in recent years