28/02/2023: Remembering the victims of the Tempi tragedy

On the night of 28 February 2023, Greece suffered one of its deadliest train disasters when a passenger train collided head-on with a freight train near Tempi, close to Larisa. The horrific accident resulted in the tragic loss of 57 lives, plunging the nation into mourning and sparking widespread outrage over railway safety in the country.

The crash

The crash occurred on the Athens-Thessaloniki railway line, one of the busiest in Greece. The passenger train, operated by Hellenic Train, was carrying hundreds of people, including many students returning to Thessaloniki after a holiday break. The collision, which happened just before midnight, caused several carriages to derail and burst into flames, making rescue efforts difficult. Survivors described scenes of chaos, with passengers scrambling to escape from the burning wreckage.

The victims

The tragedy claimed the lives of people from all walks of life—students, professionals, railway workers, and families. Among the deceased were:

1. Panagiotis Bournazis, son of Evangelos, 14 years old, a student from Thessaloniki, had his birthday the next day.
2. Anastasia Papaggeli, 18 years old, an agricultural studies student at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (A.U.Th.), from Kalavryta.
3. Thomai (Thomi) Plakia, 19 years old, a pharmacy student at AUTh, from Kalampaka, twin sister of Chrysi, cousin of Anastasia.
4. Chrysi (Chrysa) Plakia, 19 years old, a cosmetology student, from Kalampaka, twin sister of Thomi, cousin of Anastasia.
5. Anastasia Plakia, 19 years old, a cosmetology student in Thessaloniki, originally from Kalampaka, cousin of the aforementioned twins.
6. Anastasios Koutsopoulos, 21 years old, an agricultural studies student at AUTh, from Karditsa.
7. Maria-Thomai (Marthi) Psaropoulou, 19 years old, from Panorama, Thessaloniki.
8. Francesca Beza, 20 years old, a student at the Department of Balkan, Slavic and Oriental Studies at the University of Macedonia (PAMAK), from Panorama, Thessaloniki.
9. Georgios Papazoglou, 22 years old, a physics student at AUTh, from Thessaloniki.
10. Eleni Tsintza, 20 years old, a student at the Department of Primary Education at AUTh, from Koufalia, Thessaloniki.
11. Iordanis Adamakis, 22 years old, a footballer for AO Ypato, from Kavala.
12. Klaudia-Alexandra Lata, 20 years old, a medical student at the Military School of Officers of Health in Thessaloniki, from Larisa.
13. Afroditi Tsioma, 22 years old, an aesthetician, from Thessaloniki.
14. Agapi Tsaklidou, 22 years old, a student at the Department of Surveying Engineering at AUTh, from Thessaloniki.
15. Iphigenia Mitska, 22 years old, a graduate of the Higher School of Tourism Education of Rhodes, from Giannitsa.
16. Angelos Tilkeridis, 23 years old, from Irinoupoli, Naousa.
17. Denis Rouchi, 22 years old, from Athens.
18. Kyprianos Papaioannou, 23 years old, a law student at AUTh, from Cyprus.
19. Nikitas Karatheodorou, 23 years old, a firefighter, from Thessaloniki.
20. Anastasia Adamidi, 24 years old, a graduate of the School of Dentistry at AUTh, from Paphos, Cyprus.
21. Kalliopi (Kelly) Porfyriou, 23 years old, a theology student at AUTh, from Thessaloniki.
22. Dimitra-Evangelia Kapetaniou, 24 years old, a graduate of the Nursery Education Department at Democritus University of Thrace, from Thessaloniki.
23. Elisavet Chatzivasileiou, 26 years old, a soprano, from Oraiokastro, Thessaloniki.
24. Dimitrios Aslanidis, 26 years old, from Thessaloniki.
25. Nikolaos Nalbantis, 29 years old, a train driver, originally from Edessa.
26. Sotirios Karageorgiou, 27 years old, from Meliki, Imathia, lived in Thessaloniki.
27. Elpida Choupa, 28 years old, a civil engineering graduate from Patras and an architecture student at AUTh, from Atalanti, Fthiotida.
28. Ioannis Karasavvas, 27 years old, a final-year student at PAMAK, from Thessaloniki.
29. Dimitrios Oikou, 28 years old, a train driver from Alexandroupoli, nephew of actor and screenwriter Nikos Stavrakoudis.
30. Panagiotis Chatzicharalambous, 29 years old, a railway employee (ticket inspector), from Athens.
31. Sofia-Irini Tachmazidou, 31 years old, an employee, niece of the mayor of Lagadas, from Thessaloniki.
32. Dimitrios Massalis, 29 years old, the second train driver of the freight train, from Athens.
33. Vaios Vlachos, 34 years old, a geotechnical engineer and AUTh graduate, from Karditsa.
34. Athina Katsara, 34 years old, mother of a two-year-old boy, from Katerini.
35. Mia Mohhammad Edris, 33 years old, from Bangladesh.
36. Spyridon Voulgaris, 34 years old, one of the two train drivers of the freight train, from Lianokladi, Fthiotida.
37. Culea Ionel, 34 years old, from Braila, Romania.
38. Elena Dourmika, 35 years old, served as a professional soldier in the 1st Signal Company in Veria, mother of two young boys.
39. Vaia Bleka-Karakosta, 42 years old, a nurse in the Pathology Clinic of the General State Hospital of Larisa, from Tyrnavos.
40. Ioannis Voutsinas, 49 years old, from Piraeus.
41. Andreas Pavlidis, 48 years old, an environmental scientist, from Thessaloniki.
42. Maria Mourtzaki, 51 years old, worked at the train’s canteen, from Heraklion.
43. Vasileios-Kyriakos Kottas, 50 years old, from Thessaloniki.
44. Vangelis Bournazis, 53 years old, a retired police officer, from Thessaloniki, father of Panagiotis.
45. Vasiliki Chlorou, 54 years old, mother of gymnast Christoforos-Aggelos Konstantinidis (rings), from Thessaloniki.
46. Maria Egout, 55 years old, an administrative employee at AHEPA Hospital and mother of actor and director Thodoris Eleftheriadis, from Thessaloniki.
47. Ioannis Tzovaras, 55 years old, originally from Stylida, Fthiotida, a railway employee (ticket inspector).
48. Chrysi Koukarioti, 55 years old, originally from Adriani, Drama, lived in Thessaloniki.
49. Maria Miari, 56 years old, originally from Vitalades, Corfu, a railway employee of Hellenic Train.
50. Georgios Fotopoulos, 57 years old, from Switzerland.
51. Georgios Koutsoumpas, 58 years old, the train driver of the passenger train, from Amaliada, then resident of Thessaloniki.
52. Bozo Pavlini, 61 years old, from Albania, an employee of Hellenic Train, working in the train canteen.
53. Ioannis Kariotis, 63 years old, from the village of Sycamino, Municipality of Oropos, a railway employee (ticket inspector).
54. Evangelia Dos Santos Silva-Koukarioti, 63 years old, from Adriani, Drama, permanently residing in Germany.
55. Georgios Kyriakidis, 66 years old, a father of two children and grandfather of seven, resident of Kordelio, Thessaloniki.
56. Ibrahim Masri, 42 years old, a Syrian refugee, identified via a DNA sample sent by his brother from the Netherlands.
57. Erietta Molcho, 22 years old, an architecture student at AUTh, originally from Thessaloniki (missing and presumed dead).

The victims will forever be remembered, and their loss remains a painful wound.