After Horrific Train Crash, an Arrest and a Resignation

There's nothing left of the front two carriages of a passenger train that collided with a freight train near Tempe, Greece, on Tuesday. The cars, which caught fire, are "completely destroyed," the BBC reports, adding it's unclear how many people died. The death toll stands at 36 but could still grow as emergency officials continue to comb through the wreckage, surveyed in drone footage. The front four carriages of the passenger train derailed as the train collided head-on with a freight train traveling on the same track just before midnight. A 59-year-old station master in nearby Larissa has been arrested on charges of manslaughter by negligence and grievous bodily harm by negligence, though he reportedly blames a technical failure.

Greece's minister for infrastructure and transport resigned Wednesday. "It is what I feel as a duty to do, as a mark of respect toward the memory of the people who died so unfairly," Kostas Karamanlis said, per the BBC, adding he was taking responsibility "for the Greek state's and Greek political system's mistakes." He acknowledged "the Greek railway system ... is not up to 21st-century standards," per CNN. The government has "made every effort to improve this reality" in recent years, but "unfortunately, our efforts have not been sufficient to prevent such a bad incident," he said. The passenger train was carrying 342 passengers and 10 crew members, while two crew members were on the freight train. At least 72 people have been hospitalized.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis promised "we will find out the causes of this tragedy and do everything in our power to make sure it never happens again" during a Wednesday visit to the crash site, where he said the focus was on treating the wounded and identifying the dead, per the BBC. Fire officials say the temperature of the blaze topped 2,370 degrees Fahrenheit, making identification "very difficult." The Greek government has announced it will pay for the funerals of those killed amid three days of national mourning. Per the Greek City Times, Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou described the victims as "mainly young people" returning to the educational hub of Thessaloniki from Athens following a holiday for Greek Orthodox Lent. (More train crash stories.)