A passenger train collided with an oncoming freight train, causing a fiery crash on Wednesday in northern Greece. The crash killed at least 36 people and injured at least 85 people.
The stationmaster was arrested in Larissa in connection to the crash and two others were brought in for questions, The Associated Press reported.
There are 20 to 25 people still missing, so the death toll from the collision could change, according to the BBC.
Around 350 passengers were on board the passenger train that was heading northbound from Athens to Thessaloniki, both of which are popular with tourists. Search and rescue efforts continue through thick smoke, per AP.
“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,” Vassilis Varthakoyiannis, a spokesman for Greece’s firefighting service, told the AP.
Emergency services from nearby towns were deployed to help with rescue efforts.
“The bodies are being transferred to the hospitals of Larissa in order to begin the process of recognition and identification,” the Fire Brigade said in a statement, per ABC News.
Survivors said some passengers were thrown from the train car windows on impact.
“We just heard a bang … the (train) car started spinning, before ending up sideways when we managed to exit,” one passenger told Greek public broadcaster ERT, per CNN.
The cause of the collision is unknown pending further investigation, but Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said the Greek government would do everything it can to find out what caused the crash.
“I can guarantee one thing: We will find out the causes of this tragedy and we will do all that’s in our power so that something like this never happens again,” Mitsotakis said, per the AP.
This story will be updated as more information develops.