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Tempi railway tragedy/ Court in Greece begins investigation into 7 former officials

2025-04-26 17:43:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Tempi railway tragedy/ Court in Greece begins investigation into 7 former

A special investigator looking into the 2023 Tempi rail disaster in central Greece has expanded the probe, putting at least seven former senior transport officials under scrutiny.

The individuals, all non-political appointees who served as general secretaries at the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport between 2016 and 2023, are being investigated for their possible role in systemic failures linked to the deadly crash.

Recent testimony from two senior civil servants appears to have intensified the investigation. The head of the Directorate of Railway Transport and the deputy director of the General Directorate of Transport are said to have named the secretariats as responsible for safety deficiencies.

One official claimed that the delay in implementing ERGOSE’s 717 contract was due to inaction by the General Secretariat of Infrastructure. Another testified that he had sent security memos citing staff shortages and infrastructure neglect as early as September 2021, addressed to then-Minister Costas Karamanlis and other senior figures.

The case file can be sent to Parliament if a political figure is implicated, as stipulated by the Greek Constitution.

Special investigator Sotiris Bakaimis is expected to decide in the coming days whether to call in other non-political figures for questioning. Two forensic reports, one from the Fire Department and a second from National Technical University of Athens professor Dimitris Karonis, are expected soon and could influence further steps.

A metallurgical analysis by Professor Petros Tsakiridis, examining the wreckage from the accident, is said to show damage caused by the collision rather than combustion, and no traces of internal fire were found.

The February 2023 accident in Tempi claimed 57 lives, making it one of the deadliest rail disasters in Greek history and sparking nationwide protests over transport safety. /CNA





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