Greek transport minister resigns over train crash; 36 dead
Published:Wednesday | March 1, 2023 | 11:14 AM
TEMPE, Greece (AP) — Rescuers searched Wednesday through the burned-out wreckage of two trains that slammed into each other in northern Greece, killing at least 36 people and crumpling several carriages into twisted steel knots.
Transport Minister Kostas Karamanlis resigned, saying he felt it was his “duty” to step down “as a basic indication of respect for the memory of the people who died so unfairly.”
The cause of the crash near the Vale of Tempe, a river valley about 380 kilometres (235 miles) north of Athens, was not immediately clear, but the stationmaster in the nearby city of Larissa was arrested Wednesday.
The police did not release his name.
Another two people have been detained for questioning.
It's unclear at what speed the passenger train and the freight train were travelling when they ran into each other just before midnight Tuesday, but survivors said the impact threw several passengers through the windows of train cars.
State broadcaster ERT quoted rescuers saying they found some victims' bodies 30-40 metres (100-130 feet) from the impact site.
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