[InTime News]
Former Deputy Chairman of the Hellenic Air and Rail Accident Investigation Authority (HARSIA) Christos Papadimitriou rejected accusations of inconsistency regarding his statements on the fireball cause of the deadly train crash in Tempe, which killed 57 people.
In an interview with ALPHA TV, Papadimitriou, who resigned for “personal integrity and family reasons,” defended his actions, stating he had done “everything possible” to uncover the truth. He also revealed receiving threatening messages in his car for two consecutive days but chose not to report them to the police.
Papadimitriou responded to criticism from Deputy Prime Minister Kostis Hatzidakis, who had accused him of wavering on the fireball issue. “I was accused of vacillation when two top universities, cited by the investigation team and ERA experts, withdrew their support for the report,” he said. “I am legally obligated to respect their request to remove their backing, but I’m the one accused of vacillation.”
Papadimitriou also proposed creating an interdisciplinary committee of leading Greek university professors to reach a scientifically sound conclusion on the incident.