Renovation work has been completed on the courtroom where proceedings in the trial over Greece’s deadly Tempe railway disaster will resume on Wednesday, authorities said.
The modifications were carried out at the Gaiopolis Conference Center of the University of Thessaly in the central city of Larissa, with the aim of improving conditions for the high-profile proceedings and accommodating more participants and members of the public.
Following the work, the main hearing room of the Three-Member Court of Appeals of Larissa was expanded to 452 square meters, up from nearly 284 square meters when the trial opened on March 23. Around 100 additional seats were also added to increase capacity.
The intervention was implemented by the Justice Ministry after a request from the Plenary of Greek Bar Associations, amid widespread complaints that the original venue was too cramped for the scale of the proceedings.
The trial concerns the 2023 Tempe railway accident, Greece’s worst rail disaster, in which 57 people were killed. The 36 defendants include railway officials and Transport Ministry officials.
