Severe Double Traffic Accident on Egnatia Odos Motorway Leaves Two Dead or Critically Injured

A double traffic accident on the Egnatia Odos motorway left at least two people dead or critically injured on Saturday afternoon, March 28, 2026, after a car collided with a truck near the Dodoni interchange and a highway employee was then struck by a separate passing vehicle. The first accident occurred in the lane heading toward Igoumenitsa, when a passenger car veered off course and slammed into a truck traveling in the same direction. A vehicle belonging to the highway concessionaire then stopped on the opposite carriageway, toward Ioannina, so that an employee could assess the situation and offer assistance. As the employee stepped out onto the roadway, a passing vehicle struck him. Reports on the outcome of the two incidents conflict across sources: iefimerida.gr and NEWS 24/7 reported two fatalities, while To Vima Online and NewsIT described the condition of the car driver and the employee as extremely critical.

Highway shut in both directions after successive crashes Authorities closed the Egnatia Odos in both directions following the two successive accidents, according to multiple Greek media outlets reporting from the scene. Police and fire brigade units were dispatched to the location, which sources variously described as one kilometer after the Dodoni junction or just after the Dodoni tunnel. The closure affected traffic across the full width of the motorway, with no indication in the available reports of when lanes might reopen. The two injured or killed were taken to hospital, according to NewsIT. The sequence of events — a primary collision followed by a second accident involving a would-be rescuer — complicated the emergency response at the scene.

Conflicting casualty reports from Greek media outlets The discrepancy in casualty figures across sources reflects the rapidly evolving nature of the situation in the immediate aftermath of the accidents. Two outlets, iefimerida.gr and NEWS 24/7, cited information from public broadcaster ERT and reported two deaths. Two other outlets, To Vima Online and NewsIT, reported that both the car driver and the Egnatia Odos employee were in an extremely or particularly critical condition as of their publication times. The articles from NewsIT and To Vima Online were published slightly earlier than those from iefimerida.gr and NEWS 24/7, suggesting the fatality reports may reflect updated information received after the initial dispatches. No official statement from police or hospital authorities confirming a final casualty count was available in the source articles at the time of reporting. The situation remained fluid as of the early afternoon hours of Saturday.

Egnatia Odos employee among those struck in the chain of accidents The Egnatia Odos is one of Greece's most significant infrastructure projects, stretching across northern Greece and connecting the Ionian coast with the Turkish border. The motorway is operated under a concession model, with Egnatia Odos S.A. employing road assistance and maintenance personnel who respond to incidents along the route. Secondary accidents involving emergency responders or bystanders stopping at the scene of a prior crash are a recognized road safety hazard on high-speed motorways across Europe. The involvement of a concessionaire employee as a victim in the second accident highlighted the particular dangers faced by highway workers responding to incidents on high-speed roads. According to the available reports, the employee had stopped in the lane heading toward Ioannina — the direction opposite to the initial crash — and was in the process of exiting the vehicle when he was hit. The initial collision between the passenger car and the truck in the Igoumenitsa-bound lane appears to have set off the chain of events that led to the second impact. No information was available in the source articles regarding the identity or condition of the truck driver involved in the first accident, or whether additional vehicles were involved beyond those described.