Greek railway workers extend strike by 48 Hours after train collision
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All Hellenic train services are suspended for Saturday, March 4, and Sunday, March 5.
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A train remains parked at the station during a strike in the port city of Thessaloniki, northern Greece, Thursday, March 2, 2023. (AP)
Greek railway workers have extended a strike that began on March 2 by 48 hours in response to a recent train accident that killed at least 57 people, according to Hellenic Train.
"Due to the 48-hour strike announced by the railway workers' unions, all Hellenic Train services are suspended for Saturday, March 4, and Sunday, March 5," the company said in a statement.
A passenger train collided with a freight train on Tuesday near the city of Larissa. Before the accident, the passenger train had switched to the freight train's lane, putting them on the same track and resulting in a head-on collision.
Families and friends clung to each other in tears on Friday as the coffin of a 34-year-old mother killed in Greece's deadliest train crash was lifted up the stairs of a church.
The first known funeral following Tuesday night's accident, which killed at least 57 people, was held in the northern town of Katerini, as police said 52 bodies had so far been identified - almost all through DNA tests due to the severity of the crash.
Anger has grown across the country in the aftermath of the crash, which the government blamed on human error but unions say was unavoidable due to a lack of maintenance and faulty signaling.
Following two days of evening protests, 2,000 students took to the streets of Athens on Friday, blocking the road in front of parliament for a moment of silence. Protesters threw petrol bombs and set garbage bins on fire, sparking clashes. Police retaliated with teargas canisters.
