Train crash probe extended as Poland marks anniversary
PR dla Zagranicy
Nick Hodge
03.03.2014 13:02
An investigation into the 3 March 2012 train collision that killed 16 people in southern Poland has been extended to June 2014, prosecutors have confirmed.
Crash site. Photo: wikipedia
Relatives of the victims gathered on Sunday in the Silesian village of Chalupki, near Szczekociny, where lanterns and wreaths were laid at a monument commemorating the crash.
The collision between a train running from Przemysl to Warsaw and a service from Warsaw to Krakow marked Poland's worst rail accident in over two decades.
Besides 16 fatalities, 50 people were hospitalised.
Two people have been charged to date in connection with the tragedy.
Andrzej N. (full name withheld under Polish privacy laws), is accused of “unintentionally causing manslaughter” by sending the southbound train from Warsaw onto the wrong line.
Meanwhile, Jolanta S. allegedly allowed the northbound train onto the same line.
Andrzej N. spent several months in psychiatric care following the disaster. Both defendants face up to eight years in prison.
They have also been charged with falsifying documentation in rail log books.
The investigation is being carried out by the District Prosecutor's Office in Czestochowa, southern Poland. (nh)
Source: PAP