2 trains collide, killing at least 36 in Greece

ALBAWABA - At least 36 people were killed and dozens others were injured in a head-on collision between two trains in central Greece early Wednesday, fire service officials reported. 

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The officials said that a passenger train and an oncoming freight train crashed into each other in a fiery wreck north of the capital Athens.

CNN reported that the two trains were "traveling on the same track for many kilometers before the incident occurred." It quoted the state-owned public broadcaster ERT as saying that the passenger train had "changed lanes and switched to a cargo track before it collided head-on with a freight train."

Survivors on the passenger train, which had 350 people aboard, described the horrors of the moment.

“We just heard a bang… the (train) car started spinning, before ending up sideways when we managed to exit,” a male passenger told Greek public broadcaster ERT.

“It was 10 nightmarish seconds with fire, you couldn’t see much from the smoke,” said a second passenger.

Medics revealed that at least 25 of the injured people are in serious condition, while search continues for other survivors under the wreckage.

Fire Service spokesman Vassilis Varthakoyiannis said the evacuation process "is ongoing and is being carried out under very difficult conditions due to the severity of the collision between the two trains."

Several cars derailed and around three burst into flame after the trains slammed into each other near Tempe valley, media sources revealed.