Tempi Train Disaster: Victims’ Families Sue Bayer and Siemens

Greece’s largest railway catastrophe astatine Tempi. Credit: AMNA

The deadly Tempi bid disaster successful Greece has taken connected a startling caller dimension. Two German corporations—Bayer AG and Siemens Mobility GmbH— are present linked to the catastrophe.

According to grounds presented by method investigators, silicone oils look to beryllium liable for the occurrence and fireball that occurred aft the collision of the 2 trains.

In an interrogation with Deutsche Welle, Thomas Kalvourtzis, a Thessaloniki judicial serviceman and uncle of Angelos Tilkeridis, 1 of the victims who mislaid his beingness successful the Tempi railway disaster, stated that “within the lawsuit file, based connected grounds provided by Hellenic Train, a circumstantial batch of Bayer silicone oils is mentioned, which Siemens had purchased and utilized successful the transformers.” He added that, since the silicone oils were deemed liable for the fire, the companies that manufactured and supplied them should besides beryllium investigated.

Consequently, the household of  Angelos Tilkeridis, filed a suit against the companies and Greek obstruction authorities. What began arsenic a nationalist calamity has developed into a analyzable planetary communicative of responsibility, accountability, and the hunt for answers.

The relation of silicone oils

Investigators identified a circumstantial batch of silicone oils produced by Bayer and purchased by Siemens for bid transformers.

They determined the oils contributed straight to the catastrophic blaze. The suit cites European Directive 85/374, which became instrumentality successful Germany successful 1989 and Greece successful 2002.

The directive requires some manufacturers and suppliers to compensate for defective products and forbids them from citing worker errors oregon antithetic circumstances arsenic a defense.

However, this uncovering is not an authoritative determination by the authorities and is not considered an indisputable fact. Other theories astir the root of the fireball exist.

Compensation and accountability

The Tilkeridis household seeks €80 cardinal ($92.808.501) successful compensation. However, they accent that accountability remains their superior objective. After method investigators confirmed the relation of the oils, the household collected further grounds to fortify the ineligible case.

Ensuring transparency successful investigations

Kalvourtzis emphasized that Bayer and Siemens should be immoderate toxicological oregon biochemical examinations of Angelos.

“This beingness ensures that the results cannot beryllium disputed by the companies themselves, which are presently held responsible,” helium said.

International implications

The Tempi catastrophe raises important questions astir firm accountability and the information of planetary proviso chains.

Furthermore, it demonstrates however companies operating crossed borders tin beryllium held liable erstwhile defective products origin quality tragedies.

Beyond the courtroom

For the families, the suit represents much than ineligible action. It symbolizes designation of their loss, extortion for aboriginal passengers, and anticipation that negligence is ne'er repeated.

As Greece navigates this analyzable case, the satellite watches however justness tin widen crossed borders successful the look of preventable disasters.