Derailment horror
Two dead as train barrels into homes in Greece.
THESSALONIKI:
A Greek express train that slammed into a house after derailing near the northern city of Thessaloniki killed two people and seriously injured three others, the train’s operator said, lowering the initial toll of casualties.
Trainose had initially reported four deaths from the accident which occurred at 4.40pm GMT on Saturday, with five people suffering serious injuries.
It did not explain the higher number of casualties first reported.
The company did not identify the victims, but said the train driver was among the injured after all five carriages of the express train travelling from Athens left the track and the engine carriage ploughed into the house.
Search and rescue operations ended in the evening with no word from the dozens of emergency services workers of any further addition to the toll.
Most of the 70 passengers were safely evacuated within three hours of the accident which happened near the station at Adendro, about 40km from Thessaloniki.
The cause of the derailment was not immediately known, police said, and Trainose said it had opened an investigation.
But a regional official, Voula Patoulidou, said the train might have been travelling too fast as it shuttled between Greece’s two biggest cities.
A 24-year-old man who lived in the house which was hit told reporters he managed to jump off a balcony to safety just before impact.
A senior national railway official, who arrived at the crash site, said there had been no problems or incidents reported on that stretch of line. — AFP