Marches held across Serbia to commemorate Novi Sad railway station tragedy

Crowds gathered across Serbia at 11:52 on Tuesday, the exact time when a concrete canopy collapsed at Novi Sad railway station and began a tragedy that claimed 16 lives.

The collapse on Nov. 1, 2024, killed 14 people immediately. Two others later died in hospital, and only one person survived. The government had said the recently renovated station was safe before the disaster.

People observed 16 minutes of silence in memory of the victims. Marches later took place in Belgrade, Novi Sad and Niš, continuing nationwide anti-government protests led by students for more than a year.

In Belgrade, students and their supporters walked from the city center to the main railway station at Prokop, near Belgrade Fair, where they paid tribute to the victims. In Novi Sad, marchers went to the city’s main station for a silent memorial, with the names of the 16 victims read aloud one per minute.

Niš held its memorial under the slogan “It’s Still 11:52.” One student organizer said the participants had come so they would not forget. Ministers and other officials have been arrested and indicted in connection with the tragedy, but no one has yet been sentenced.