Serbia: Anger mounts after fatal train station roof collapse

DW (English)

Serbia's construction minister Goran Vesic announced his resignation over the disaster which killed 14 people as people demand answers about recent rennovations at the Novi Sad station.

Transcript

00:00This street in the Serbian city of Novi Sad is lined with a makeshift memorial.

00:06People have gathered in silence to light candles, lay flowers and leave teddy bears

00:11in memory of those whose lives were so tragically cut short last week.

00:15At least 14 people, the youngest of whom was a six-year-old girl,

00:19died on Friday when the canopy over the entrance to Novi Sad Central Station collapsed.

00:25But beneath the sorrow at this vigil, anger is brewing.

00:28Many here are saying that this tragedy was a crime born out of corruption.

00:33Demands for accountability and answers echo through the crowd

00:37as people seek justice for the city's devastating loss.

00:41This is no longer normal.

00:43It's really not normal.

00:45Children are being lost.

00:47Look at the people with small children.

00:49Those children who have suffered will never return.

00:53I don't know what to do now.

00:55Should we worry about the traffic light falling on us?

00:58If he is responsible, sir...

01:01I mean, everyone here knows who is responsible.

01:04I wouldn't mention his name.

01:06The station, which was built in the early 1960s,

01:09recently underwent renovation as part of Serbia's drive to modernize its railway.

01:14Novi Sad is a major stop on the Belgrade to Budapest high-speed railway link.

01:18In 2022, part of the link was opened by Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic

01:23and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

01:26Reconstruction of the train station was completed just over two years later.

01:31Now, however, the entrance of the station lies in ruins.

01:35While rescuers were still searching for the missing under the rubble,

01:38President Vucic promised that those responsible would be severely punished

01:43and called for political responsibility.

01:46Officials now insist that the canopy was not part of the renovation work.

01:51I only know that it is almost incredible that we did not renovate the canopy for 60 years.

01:59When we renovated everything and invested a lot of money,

02:03we only did not renovate the canopy.

02:06Why? I don't know.

02:08Someone will probably provide the answers.

02:11Geological engineer Zoran Djajic has already presented evidence

02:15indicating that the canopy was, in fact, renovated.

02:20He was involved in the project as a consultant supervising stonework.

02:24And in one of his reports, he recommended the inspection and repair of the roof,

02:29which held up the canopy by means of metal rods.

02:33If it was done, I suppose that someone in charge of the other part,

02:41that is, the statics, the construction and so on,

02:45would have seen what the basis was and would have asked

02:49if it was necessary to intervene on those rods.

02:52After last week's accident, citizens began sharing photos

02:56that showed that the canopy had indeed been reconstructed

02:59and that a steel frame with glass had also been added.

03:03The rods were designed to withstand a certain weight per square centimetre.

03:12Obviously, that weight was added so much

03:17that the connection between the rod and the concrete,

03:21which was also in such a bad condition for these rods,

03:24could not withstand it, and then it just collapsed.

03:27Local journalist Dragana Prica has been following the station's reconstruction work for years.

03:33Two Chinese companies were responsible for the renovation work,

03:37while a Hungarian firm was entrusted with supervision.

03:40However, she says, the work was shrouded in secrecy

03:44as the Ministry refused to provide official documents.

03:48They say that they cannot disclose this information

03:52because the Chinese partner does not agree to disclose it to a third party.

03:56To this day, we do not know what is in the contract,

03:59we do not know who they cooperated with.

04:01Obviously, there are some subcontractors.

04:03We do not know what the additional works were.

04:05Obviously, there were subcontractors.

04:07As calls for accountability grow louder,

04:10both citizens and opposition figures vow

04:13that this tragedy will not become just another chapter

04:16in a decade of scandals that have rocked Serbia and gone unpunished.

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