The trial concerning the 2023 Tempe rail disaster continues today (13 July 2026) at the Three-Member Court of Appeals for Felonies in Larissa, where defendants are presenting their individual statements.
At the previous hearing on Wednesday, six defendants—including the station master on duty during the night shift on 28 February 2023 and the then-head of the Larissa Inspection Department of the Central and Southern Greece Rail Traffic Support Service—concluded their individual submissions through their legal counsel.
In total, 36 individuals—current and former officials across the entire spectrum of Greece’s railway system between 2016 and 2023—are charged in connection with the crash. Among them are three station masters and the head of inspection, accused regarding actions taken at Larissa Railway Station prior to the collision.
Eleven staff members from OSE—including employees, former presidents, chief executives, and department heads—are charged with various acts and omissions, such as the reassignment of a station master, failure to repair faults along the Larissa–Neoi Poroi rail section, not appointing a second, more experienced station master for the night shift, and failing to enforce a nighttime operating circular.
Sixteen officials from ERGOSE—including engineers, former presidents, and chief executives—are charged in relation to the implementation of Contract 717, which covered the installation of essential signalling and remote control systems across the national rail network.
Two Hellenic Train executives—the then-chief executive officer and technical director—are accused of negligence concerning the operation of the GSM-R radio communication system on train units.
Two non-political officials from the Ministry of Transport, along with the former president of the Hellenic Railways Regulatory Authority, face charges related to oversight and the safe operation of the rail system.
With the exception of the two Hellenic Train executives and one OSE employee, all 33 other defendants are charged with the felony of disrupting transport safety—a charge carrying a potential sentence of life imprisonment.
During the last hearing, the station master’s lawyer was the first to speak, focusing on the legal elements of intent and conscious negligence. He argued that intent cannot be established in this case, noting that even if the station master had perceived a risk, he reasonably believed the outcome—the fatal collision—would not occur, given other intervening safeguards, including the passenger train driver’s ability to stop the train upon realising it was on the wrong track (the downhill instead of the uphill line).
The lawyer also highlighted the working conditions under which the station master operated: alone at a major central station, without adequate experience and in the absence of functional safety systems.
The lawyer representing the inspector is expected to continue his statement today.