Tempe railway disaster monument unveiled in Thessaloniki

A monument titled “The Tree of Memory”, dedicated to the 57 victims of the Tempe railway disaster, was unveiled on Sunday in Thessaloniki, just over two years after the tragedy.

Among the crowd gathered to honor the victims were parents, relatives, friends, and Thessaloniki Mayor Stelios Angeloudis.

Designed by artist Maria Mandaki and sculpted by Ioannis Santexis, the tree-shaped monument stands at parkland in Nea Paralia. The names of all 57 victims are intricately incorporated into the artwork as birds fallen from the branches.

Many of those lost in the accident were students returning to Thessaloniki after a holiday weekend when their passenger train collided with a freight train in Tempe, central Greece.

A similar monument, “The Tree of Souls”, has been installed in Athens, symbolically linking the two cities in remembrance.

Source: AMNA, Kathimerini