On Wednesday, March 1, at least 43 people were killed and 85 injured after a train from Athens to Thessaloniki collided at high speed with an oncoming freight train in a wreck in northern Greece. Multiple cars derailed and at least three burst into flames after the collision just before midnight near the town of Tempe. The impact threw some passengers into ceilings and out of windows. The train was carrying 350 passengers, many being university students coming back from their holidays, 

  Greek police said the manager of the train station in the central city of Larissa was arrested Wednesday in connection with the head-on collision. Another two people were detained for questioning. Transportation Minister Kostas Karamanlis resigned, saying he was stepping down “as a basic indication of respect for the memory of the people who died so unfairly.” The union representing train workers announced a 24-hour strike for Thursday, while protests by left-wing groups broke out in Athens late Wednesday. Minor clashes broke out as some protesters threw stones at the offices of Greece’s rail operator and riot police and set dumpsters on fire. No arrests or injuries were reported.