{"id":4382,"date":"2023-03-01T17:47:26","date_gmt":"2023-03-01T17:47:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/londonpost.news\/?p=4382"},"modified":"2023-03-01T17:47:26","modified_gmt":"2023-03-01T17:47:26","slug":"greeces-transport-minister-resigns-after-train-crash-36-dead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/magazine\/climate\/natural-disaster-and-tragedies\/greeces-transport-minister-resigns-after-train-crash-36-dead\/2023\/03\/01\/admin1\/","title":{"rendered":"Greece’s transport minister resigns after train crash 36 dead"},"content":{"rendered":"

TEMPE,<\/span> GREECE<\/span> (AP)<\/span> –<\/span> Rescuers<\/span> searched<\/span> the<\/span> burnt-out<\/span> wreckage<\/span> of<\/span> two<\/span> trains<\/span> that<\/span> collided<\/span> with<\/span> each<\/span> other<\/span> in<\/span> northern<\/span> Greece,<\/span> killing<\/span> at<\/span> least<\/span> 36<\/span> people<\/span> and<\/span> leaving<\/span> several<\/span> train<\/span> carriages<\/span> in<\/span> twisted<\/span> steel<\/span> knots.<\/span>\u00a0
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Transport<\/span> Minister<\/span> Costas<\/span> Karamanlis<\/span> resigned,<\/span> saying<\/span> he<\/span> felt<\/span> it<\/span> was<\/span> his<\/span> “obligation”<\/span> to<\/span> do<\/span> so<\/span> “as<\/span> a<\/span> fundamental<\/span> sign<\/span> of<\/span> respect<\/span> for<\/span> the<\/span> memory<\/span> of<\/span> those<\/span> who<\/span> died<\/span> unjustly”.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> cause<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> crash<\/span> near<\/span> the<\/span> Tempe<\/span> Valley,<\/span> a<\/span> river<\/span> valley<\/span> about<\/span> 380<\/span> kilometers<\/span> (235<\/span> miles)<\/span> north<\/span> of<\/span> Athens,<\/span> was<\/span> not<\/span> immediately<\/span> clear,<\/span> but<\/span> a<\/span> station<\/span> master<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> nearby<\/span> town<\/span> of<\/span> Larissa<\/span> was<\/span> arrested<\/span> Wednesday.<\/span> Police<\/span> did<\/span> not<\/span> release<\/span> his<\/span> name.<\/span> Two<\/span> others<\/span> were<\/span> arrested<\/span> for<\/span> questioning.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Passengers<\/span> say<\/span> train<\/span> crash<\/span> was<\/span> like<\/span> an<\/span> explosion<\/span><\/strong>
\n<\/span>A<\/span> teenage<\/span> survivor,<\/span> who<\/span> did<\/span> not<\/span> give<\/span> his<\/span> name<\/span> to<\/span> reporters,<\/span> said<\/span> he<\/span> felt<\/span> the<\/span> brakes<\/span> hit<\/span> hard<\/span> just<\/span> before<\/span> the<\/span> crash<\/span> and<\/span> saw<\/span> sparks<\/span> before<\/span> coming<\/span> to<\/span> a<\/span> sudden<\/span> stop.<\/span> “Our<\/span> car<\/span> didn’t<\/span> derail,<\/span> but<\/span> the<\/span> car<\/span> in<\/span> front<\/span> derailed<\/span> and<\/span> was<\/span> wrecked,”<\/span> he<\/span> said,<\/span> clearly<\/span> shaking.<\/span> He<\/span> used<\/span> the<\/span> bag<\/span> to<\/span> break<\/span> the<\/span> window<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> fourth<\/span> car<\/span> and<\/span> escaped.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Stefanos<\/span> Gogakos,<\/span> who<\/span> was<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> rear<\/span> car,<\/span> said<\/span> the<\/span> impact<\/span> felt<\/span> like<\/span> an<\/span> explosion<\/span> and<\/span> he<\/span> could<\/span> see<\/span> flames<\/span> at<\/span> the<\/span> front<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> train.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>“The<\/span> window<\/span> glass<\/span> shattered<\/span> and<\/span> fell<\/span> on<\/span> us,”<\/span> he<\/span> told<\/span> ERT.<\/span> “My<\/span> head<\/span> rattled<\/span> and<\/span> hit<\/span> the<\/span> roof<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> carriage.<\/span> Some<\/span> people<\/span> started<\/span> climbing<\/span> out<\/span> the<\/span> windows<\/span> as<\/span> the<\/span> car<\/span> was<\/span> filled<\/span> with<\/span> smoke.<\/span> The<\/span> door<\/span> was<\/span> closed,<\/span> but<\/span> a<\/span> few<\/span> minutes<\/span> later<\/span> a<\/span> train<\/span> attendant<\/span> opened<\/span> it<\/span> and<\/span> got<\/span> off.<\/span> \u201d<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Several<\/span> cars<\/span> derailed<\/span> and<\/span> at<\/span> least<\/span> one<\/span> of<\/span> his<\/span> was<\/span> set<\/span> ablaze.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>“Temperatures<\/span> reached<\/span> 1,300<\/span> degrees<\/span> Celsius<\/span> (2,372<\/span> degrees<\/span> Fahrenheit),<\/span> making<\/span> it<\/span> even<\/span> more<\/span> difficult<\/span> to<\/span> identify<\/span> anyone<\/span> inside,”<\/span> said<\/span> Fire<\/span> Department<\/span> spokesman.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Wreckage<\/span> complicates<\/span> salvage<\/span><\/strong>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>On<\/span> Wednesday,<\/span> rescuers<\/span> used<\/span> cranes<\/span> and<\/span> other<\/span> heavy<\/span> equipment<\/span> to<\/span> move<\/span> most<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> train<\/span> and<\/span> found<\/span> more<\/span> bodies<\/span> and<\/span> dismembered<\/span> bodies.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>“There<\/span> were<\/span> a<\/span> lot<\/span> of<\/span> big<\/span> pieces<\/span> of<\/span> steel,”<\/span> said<\/span> local<\/span> resident<\/span> Vasilis<\/span> Polizos.<\/span> “The<\/span> trains<\/span> were<\/span> completely<\/span> destroyed,<\/span> both<\/span> passenger<\/span> and<\/span> freight<\/span> trains.”<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Rescue<\/span> worker<\/span> Lazarus<\/span> Tharianidis<\/span> told<\/span> his<\/span> ERT<\/span> that<\/span> crew<\/span> members<\/span> tried<\/span> “very<\/span> carefully”<\/span> to<\/span> untangle<\/span> steel,<\/span> sheet<\/span> metal<\/span> and<\/span> other<\/span> materials<\/span> twisted<\/span> by<\/span> the<\/span> crash.<\/span> “It’s<\/span> going<\/span> to<\/span> take<\/span> a<\/span> long<\/span> time,”<\/span> Thalianidis<\/span> said.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> Greek<\/span> fire<\/span> service<\/span> said<\/span> about<\/span> 76<\/span> people<\/span> were<\/span> hospitalized,<\/span> including<\/span> six<\/span> in<\/span> intensive<\/span> care<\/span> units.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>More<\/span> than<\/span> 200<\/span> of<\/span> him,<\/span> unharmed<\/span> or<\/span> slightly<\/span> injured,<\/span> were<\/span> taken<\/span> by<\/span> bus<\/span> to<\/span> Thessaloniki,<\/span> 130<\/span> kilometers<\/span> north<\/span> of<\/span> him.<\/span> Arriving<\/span> to<\/span> find<\/span> the<\/span> missing,<\/span> the<\/span> police<\/span> looked<\/span> up<\/span> their<\/span> names.<\/span> Eight<\/span> railway<\/span> workers,<\/span> including<\/span> two<\/span> freight<\/span> train<\/span> drivers<\/span> and<\/span> two<\/span> passenger<\/span> train<\/span> drivers,<\/span> were<\/span> killed<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> accident,<\/span> according<\/span> to<\/span> Yannis<\/span> Nitsas,<\/span> president<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> Hellenic<\/span> Railway<\/span> Workers’<\/span> Union.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Greece<\/span> mourns<\/span> from<\/span> carnival<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n


\n<\/span>Many<\/span> of<\/span> his<\/span> 350<\/span> people<\/span> on<\/span> the<\/span> passenger<\/span> train<\/span> were<\/span> students<\/span> returning<\/span> from<\/span> a<\/span> tumultuous<\/span> Greek<\/span> carnival,<\/span> officials<\/span> said.<\/span> This<\/span> year,<\/span> for<\/span> the<\/span> first<\/span> time<\/span> since<\/span> the<\/span> pandemic<\/span> began<\/span> in<\/span> 2020,<\/span> the<\/span> festivities<\/span> preceding<\/span> Lent<\/span> were<\/span> fully<\/span> celebrated.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> government<\/span> declared<\/span> three<\/span> days<\/span> of<\/span> national<\/span> mourning<\/span> for<\/span> him<\/span> starting<\/span> Wednesday,<\/span> with<\/span> flags<\/span> being<\/span> flown<\/span> at<\/span> half<\/span> mast<\/span> in<\/span> front<\/span> of<\/span> all<\/span> European<\/span> Commission<\/span> buildings<\/span> in<\/span> Brussels.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Greek<\/span> Prime<\/span> Minister<\/span> Kyriakos<\/span> Mitsotakis,<\/span> who<\/span> visited<\/span> the<\/span> crash<\/span> site,<\/span> said<\/span> the<\/span> government<\/span> must<\/span> help<\/span> recover<\/span> the<\/span> injured<\/span> and<\/span> identify<\/span> the<\/span> dead.<\/span><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

TEMPE, GREECE (AP) – Rescuers searched the burnt-out wreckage of two trains that collided with each other in northern Greece, killing at least 36 people and leaving several train carriages in twisted steel knots.\u00a0 Transport Minister Costas Karamanlis resigned, saying he felt it was his “obligation” to do so “as a fundamental sign of respect […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4383,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":""},"categories":[1034,562],"tags":[846,1332,1333,1334,1335,1336,1337,1338,1339],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/grek.jpeg","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4382"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4382"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4382\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4384,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4382\/revisions\/4384"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4383"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4382"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4382"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4382"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}