"I wasn't thinking about anything other than helping my fellow citizens." With these words, 18-year-old Greek Angelos Tsiamouras describes for the Peloponnisos newspaper what was going through his mind as he tried to help people on the passenger train that collided with another commercial train on Tuesday evening.
During the weekend, the 18-year-old had been in Patra with his company, but fate brought him face to face with death. He was in carriage no. 6 of the passenger train.
"We felt three blows, one weaker than the other, and we immediately realized the danger we were in," he said.
"I didn't think about anything else, except that I had to help my people. Together with my friend Giorgos we ran to wagons 3 and 4 to save as many people as possible and together with the rescue teams we managed to get 16 people out. All I could think about was that I had to save one more person. Nothing else!
In wagon no. 3 we saw many dead. I couldn't do, unfortunately, many things. The fire had spread. Wagon No. 1 was destroyed immediately, Wagon No. 2 was burnt by fire. I'm not a hero, don't call me that. I was just doing my duty, to my friends. He expressed his deepest condolences to the families of the victims. I hope that now the state takes its responsibilities, so that similar tragedies do not repeat in the future" - said the young man.
"It was like a fiery hell," said the 18-year-old.
But he was not the only hero of this tragedy.
Greek media have also revealed the case of a 20-year-old man who was able to break the glass himself and save at least 10 young men, boys and girls. Andreas Alikaniotis got out of the second wagon almost unscathed and defying the danger, the huge fire that broke out next to him, he wanted to save the people. And it worked.
47 people lost their lives in the accident. Searches continue for other victims.