The first two exhumations – out of nine – of bodies of victims of the deadly Tempi train crash are expected to take place on Saturday, according to reports.
A total of 57 people died in the two-train collision just before midnight on Feb. 28, 2023, just south of the Tempi tunnel in north-central Greece.
A third exhumation has been scheduled next Wednesday and a fourth on March 3. Dates for the remaining five exhumations are pending, according to the Larissa daily Eleftheria.
The local first Instance prosecutor’s office has previously approved the exhumation of a total of nine bodies as part of the ongoing investigation into the causes of the deadly accident.
The approvals were based on a request by the victims’ relatives for additional investigation into the causes of the deaths, which had been submitted four months ago. However, until recently, the appropriate laboratories to conduct them had not been specified. With the new prosecutor’s order, forensic experts have been given a 24-hour deadline to specify the laboratories where the new autopsies and specialized tests will be carried out, as well as two days to appoint expert chemists. The latter specialty refers to allegations that some of the victims in the first coach of the passenger train were burned to death from a fireball and subsequent blazes. As such, new tests will attempt to ascertain residual chemical substances.
According to state-run broadcaster ERT, a forensic expert described the toxicological tests requested by relatives as particularly complex, noting that they cannot be carried out in a laboratory in Greece.
Composition of the justices to hear Tempi trial
Meanwhile, a three-justice misdemeanors appellate court in Larissa this week announced the judges that will hear the explosive Tempi case – expected to be the “trial of the century” in Greece. The bench prosecutor was also announced.
The trial is scheduled to begin on March 23, 2026 in Larissa, and will be held at a conference hall at the University of Thessaly, according to the Larissa appeals court prosecutor.
