A train driver was injured when windows were broken when a train traveling on the Thessaloniki-Drama route collided with a tree on the line in the Lachanokipi area on Friday.
As a result of the collision, the train’s windshield was broken, and one of the two drivers was injured and taken to the hospital, the newspaper reports. ethnos.gr.
The train’s second driver and general secretary of the Panhellenic Traction Workers’ Union (PEPE), Alexandros Iordanidis, pointed out to ethnos.gr that it was a tree that had tilted dangerously due to the strong winds blowing in the area. “It was within the track and due to the speed that the train had developed at that moment, it was impossible to stop it in front of the obstacle,” he emphasized.
Fallen trees and branches on lines and the general network are one of the main issues that train drivers have been raising for many years with the administration O.S.E.responsible for infrastructure, and before the leadership of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, without, however, solving this problem.
“We have had commitments since the summer that some of the necessary contracts for weeding and logging on the lines will begin immediately, first in the most dangerous places, and from the autumn on the entire network. Some contracts have already begun, however, as is clear from today’s incident, the problem very extensive,” Jordanidis emphasized.
The train with 51 passengers on board returned to Thessaloniki, causing delays to other services, and some passengers were transported to their destinations by buses.
According to other media reports, Hellenic Train sources said the train was moving at low speed due to grade crossings and poor infrastructure in the area. Greece’s railway authorities, the Organization of Hellenic Railways (OSE), ordered an administrative investigation to determine whether drivers were warned about downed trees on the line.
Earlier this week, strong winds caused a tree to fall on train tracks in northern Athens, disrupting traffic in the area.
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