Thirteen years ago, the railway tragedy at the Once train station left a tragic toll of 51 fatalities, the loss of an unborn baby, and more than 780 injured passengers. Year after year, family members, survivors, and some political figures gather at platform No. 2 of the terminal to remember the victims and demand justice to prevent similar events from happening again.
In the context of this sad remembrance, it is highlighted that the train driver Marcos Córdoba, who operated train Chapa 16 at the time of the accident, was sentenced to 3 years and 3 months in prison. In a second trial, former Federal Planning Minister Julio De Vido was acquitted of the disaster but sentenced to five years and eight months in prison for public fraudulent administration that may have triggered the tragedy.
Other involved officials received similar sentences, including former executives of Trenes de Buenos Aires (TBA), responsible for the concession of the Sarmiento line, and executives of the concessionaire that subsequently fell from grace. Family members of the victims expressed their dissatisfaction with the rulings and urged the judiciary to expedite civil processes, which seem to be failing in the courts.
María Luján Rey and Paolo Menguini, parents of one of the victims, read a heartfelt document during the commemoration, highlighting the lack of empathy from the judges and the need for those responsible to serve their sentences. Over the years, civil claims have been dismissed, causing frustration among the affected.
Despite the sentences handed down for fraud against the state and "willful harm," the majority of those involved have regained their freedom, causing distress among family members and survivors. The call for justice and the remembrance of that fateful day remains valid thirteen years later, with the hope that tragedies like the one in Once do not happen again and that accountability is enforced for those found guilty.
