Greece’s top prosecutor on Tuesday ordered an urgent preliminary investigation into a recent official report on the Tempi train disaster, focusing on the controversial inclusion of a reference to an unidentified flammable liquid that allegedly fueled the deadly fireball following the collision.
Supreme Court Prosecutor Georgia Adeilini instructed the Athens Prosecutor’s Office to examine the circumstances under which the claim — that a freight train was carrying at least 2.5 tons of a volatile liquid unrelated to its engines or declared cargo — was included in the final report of the National Agency for Air and Rail Accident Investigation and Transport Safety (EODASAAM).
The report, made public on February 27, cited supposed input from the Universities of Ghent and Pisa in reaching that conclusion.
However, representatives from both universities later denied contributing to that specific assessment, raising suspicions of potential misconduct.
Ms. Adeilini ordered the investigation to look into whether the offense of undue influence over judicial officials — under Article 167A of the Greek Penal Code — may have been committed.
She also requested that authorities determine the role played by the Committee of Independent Experts of Victims’ Families (EDAPO) and by Kostas Lakafosis, the technical advisor representing several families of victims, in shaping the report’s findings.
“This investigation is deemed necessary to clarify potentially prosecutable offenses committed ex officio,” Ms. Adeilini stated, citing the universities' denials as the reason for the probe.
The Tempi disaster, which claimed dozens of lives in 2023 when two trains collided head-on in central Greece, has continued to generate controversy, grief, and demands for transparency.
The latest development raises new questions about the integrity of the investigation into one of the country’s deadliest rail accidents.