TRAIN DERAILMENT In Greece KILLING 36, 80+ INJURED Stationmaster ARRESTED Transport Minister RESIGNS

Rail operator Hellenic Train said the passenger train was traveling from Athens to Thessaloniki, Greece's second-largest city and a popular tourist destination that describes itself as the "gateway to the Aegean Sea."

The train carried more than 300 people, including many university students returning home from Carnival, a three-day national party that precedes the Christian season of Lent.

Multiple cars derailed and at least three burst into flames after the two trains ran into each other at high speed just before midnight Tuesday.

Rescue crews spent hours combing through the wreckage, listening for the calls of survivors. Cranes were brought in to slowly peel away layers of the twisted, burned steel.