Within the early hours of Wednesday, rescue crews had been nonetheless trying to find survivors. Native media reported about 350 folks had been travelling on the passenger prepare, which departed Athens round 7.30pm native time.
“The evacuation of passengers is underneath method in very troublesome circumstances given the severity of the collision of the 2 trains,” hearth brigade spokesperson, Vassilis Varthakogiannis, mentioned in a televised handle.
Broadcaster SKAI confirmed footage of derailed carriages, badly broken with damaged home windows and thick plumes of smoke, in addition to particles strewn throughout the street.
Rescue staff had been seen carrying torches in carriages in search of trapped passengers.
“We live via a tragedy. We’re pulling out folks alive, injured…there are lifeless. We’re going to be right here all night time, till we end, till we discover the final individual,” a volunteer rescue employee instructed ERT.
Survivors mentioned a number of passengers had been thrown via the home windows of the prepare vehicles because of the affect. They mentioned others fought to free themselves after the passenger prepare buckled, slamming right into a area subsequent to the tracks.
“There was panic within the carriage, folks had been screaming,” a younger man who was evacuated to a close-by bridge instructed SKAI TV.
“It was like an earthquake,” Angelos Tsiamouras, one other passenger, instructed ERT.
