The Ever-Burning Flames of Tempi 

Open Instagram over the summer, and you’ll tap through tens of stories of glittering, clear blue waters, beautiful white buildings with blue rooftops, plates heaped with souvlaki, xoriatiki, and, of course, cats and blue evil eyes making several cameo appearances. That’s the Greece every tourist knows and loves. 

They aren’t wrong. Greece is a beautiful country, home to islands, ruins, history, culture, and delicious gastronomy. But there is more to Greece than a pretty postcard. Greece may not be associated with an activist culture. Yet one event in particular is a dark stain in Greece’s modern history, and desperately needs international spotlight. 

According to the BBC article published on March 2nd, 2023, on February 28th, 2023, two trains collided in northern Greece, killing fifty-seven people and injuring dozens. A passenger service train crashed with a freight train after leaving Larissa before midnight. The crash happened as the passenger train emerged from a tunnel in the municipality of Tempi. The first four carriages of the passenger train were derailed, and the first two caught fire. The temperatures exceeded 1,300 °C, where the fire broke out. 

The passenger train was two-thirds full of young people, with many students traveling after the holidays. At the time of the crash, the passenger train and freight train were traveling in opposite directions, yet somehow ended up on the same track. Greece’s Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis stated “tragic human error” was to blame, causing many Greeks to see the crash as an accident waiting to happen. A local stationmaster based in Larissa had been arrested, charged with manslaughter by negligence and grievous bodily harm by negligence. The stationmaster blamed the accident on a possible technical failure. 

Two years later, the situation is drastically different. Evidence suggests that many were killed not by the crash itself, but by the fire that followed. Why does this distinction matter? Investigations have estimated that thirty passengers initially survived, but were then burned alive. Evidence suggests that there were industrial solvents in the soil, of undeclared, highly flammable chemical cargo being carried by the freight train. This ignited on impact, creating the fireball that consumed the train. Experts have claimed that the destruction cannot be explained by the claim of transformer oil. 

Greek officials blamed the crash on human error and the fire on silicone-based cooling oil. However, many Greeks (according to some polls, 72% thereof) believe there is a cover-up. The government has been accused of suppressing key evidence. 750 cubic meters of soil were excavated from the crash site and dumped miles away, and the wreckage was moved to another site. Surveillance footage of the train vanished, then resurfaced and was allegedly tampered with. Audio recordings of the conductor’s exchange with the control room seem edited to shift blame to the local station master. 

The Hellenic Air and Rail Accident Investigation report states, “It is impossible to determine what exactly caused [the fireball], but simulations and expert reports indicate the possible presence of a hitherto unknown fuel.” Investigators noted that “the site autopsy was not done properly, in order for us to then determine the fuel that caused the fireball.” The eruption of flames is followed now by anger, fury, and demands for justice. 

So where is the activism? On February 28th, 2025, Greeks held massive protests which brought the country to a halt on the second anniversary of the event. Hundreds of thousands of Greeks rallied for justice. Citizens rallied with the motto “Den Exo Oxygono” (“I have no oxygen”), one of the phrases of the victims heard in the helpline. 

Hundreds of thousands took part in what are now the largest protests in the country’s history. The protests were accompanied by demonstrations at more than 100 Greek embassies and consulates internationally across all six continents. The protests were organized by the Association of Relatives of Tempi victims and were even larger than those called in January. The public sector trade union federation and the private sector General Confederation of Greek Workers called general strikes. 

265 strikes were held in Greece and 112 internationally: almost 400 total. Rallies in Berlin, London, Edinburgh, and Manchester, Rio de Janeiro, NY, Boston, and Sydney. 430,000 people protested in Athens. In Thessaloniki, a parallel large-scale protest was held, with thousands flooding the streets. Transport came to a halt, with international and domestic flights grounded. Seafarers, train drivers, doctors, nurses, teachers, and lawyers all went on strike. 

Government offices, shops, businesses, cafes, restaurants, bars, and everything else are closed except for emergencies. The only transport was trains to get protestors to the central square. 5,000 police officers were mobilized, and tear gas and stun grenades were used. Groups of hooded men threw rocks and petrol bombs at the police, who responded with tear gas and water cannons. Dozens were arrested. 

Maria Karystianou’s words reverberated across the square: “I am addressing the murderers of our children. You treated our dead with disrespect and contempt. Human parts and bones of our children remain unburied in hidden locations. You have committed the ultimate sacrilege, and you will receive what is due through the vengeance of the dead.”

The investigation ended at the end of August 2025, with a senior judge in Larissa ordering thirty-six people to face trial, including Greek railway officials, executives of Hellenic Train, and the stationmaster on duty that night. Government officials say that reopening the investigation would only delay the trial, which is expected to begin in early 2026. The lack of effort, compassion, and answers has left many, if not all, families unsatisfied. 

The next time you step into the blistering sun of Greece, visit the Acropolis, take a ferry to go island-hopping, stop. Reflect on the history and power of this country. It is not only one of the birthplaces of civilization. It is a country full of activist heart, soul, and pride. It deserves to be recognized for more than its beaches and sands. 

And Greeks will not cease till they have answers to their demands. 

Photo: A drone view shows people gathering in front of the Greek parliament during a protest, marking the second anniversary of the country’s worst railway disaster, while an investigation continues, in Athens, February 28. via Eurokinissi Purchase Licensing Rights

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