Greek Court Trial Begins for Victims of Deadly Train Crash

Wed Apr 01 2026 19:42:37 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Families of victims gather in court demanding justice as the trial of those responsible for Greece's worst train disaster commences.

In a heart-wrenching display of grief and demand for justice, families of the 57 victims of Greece's deadliest train crash filled a courtroom in Larissa. The crash occurred in February 2023 when an intercity train collided head-on with a goods train, leading to widespread public outrage over safety lapses within the rail network. The proceedings are set to last for years, with 36 defendants on trial, including railway officials and the station master responsible during the incident.

Relatives of the 57 people who died in Greece's worst ever train disaster crowded into a courtroom on Wednesday, demanding justice for the victims.

The trial had already been postponed once because of the chaotic start last week.

Most of the victims of the crash three years ago were students, killed when their intercity service from Athens to Thessaloniki smashed head-on into a goods train on the same line near Tempi in the centre of the country.

Some of the victims are thought to have burnt to death after surviving the initial collision.

Many relatives were unable to get into the courtroom in the central town of Larisa last week, and the situation was little different when it resumed on Wednesday.

Police officers allowed in only participants who were legally scheduled to attend. Some relatives complained that two rows of seats had been taken up by police, while others said they still could not witness proceedings clearly enough.

Defence lawyer Zoe Konstantopoulou appealed for the proceedings to be filmed as access for families had been restricted.

The February 2023 disaster is widely known in Greece as the Tempi crime - with many arguing it encapsulates negligence and corruption at the heart of the state.

Thirty-six people are on trial in a case that is expected to hear from 350 witnesses and set to last years.

Among those killed was 20-year-old Anastasia Plakias, a student at the University of Thessaloniki. She, like so many other victims, was travelling back to lectures in the northern city after spending a public holiday with her family.

In the weeks after the crash, her grieving father Dimitris told the BBC he would always be proud of his daughter who only had love to give. To the frustration of many campaigners, no politician is among those on trial.

The case is taking place in a remodelled conference hall that cost hundreds of thousands of euros; more than 60,000 pages on evidence are to be presented and 200 lawyers are involved in the case. Despite this, the proceedings faced chaos on 23 March when the courtroom became overcrowded, with survivors and families of the deceased forced to sit in the seats of the accused.

The Tempi disaster provoked widespread anger and protest across Greece, with calls for accountability. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has faced criticism for his government's handling of safety concerns and has acknowledged the need for justice to take its course.