Greece train collision updates: At least 32 dead, 85 injured

At least 32 people have been killed and 85 others injured after a freight train and a passenger train crashed and derailed in Greece late Tuesday local time, officials said.

The collision occurred shortly before midnight on the Athens-Thessaloniki route, at the entrance to the Tempe Valley gorge in Thessaly, according to Fire Brigade officials.

About 350 people were on board at the time of the crash, according to the Hellenic Train Company.

“At Evangelismos, there was a head-on collision between two trains: a freight train and train IC 62, which had departed from Athens to Thessaloniki,” the company told ABC News in a statement. “Firefighters and Hellenic Train personnel rushed to the scene, participating in rescue operations and providing assistance to travelers.”

Emergency services were sent to the scene from several nearby towns to help transport injured passengers and free others trapped in the wreckage, officials said.

“Due to the severity of the collision between the two trains, crane-carrying vehicles are assisting in the extrication work,” the Fire Brigade said in a statement.

Forty ambulances with the National Emergency Center and 150 Fire Brigade firefighters responded to the scene, officials said, along with 32 police officers with 15 patrol cars.

“The remaining passengers who are in good health have already been transported by buses to Thessaloniki,” the Fire Bridage said. “The bodies are being transferred to the hospitals of Larissa in order to begin the process of recognition and identification.”

The military hospitals of Athens and Thessaloniki are on alert, in case they need to receive the wounded, according to fire officials.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.