The moment of the firebomb attack on Marfin Bank on May 5th, 2010 has been captured frame by frame in a new documentary video that has come to light. The footage shows the moment a group of hooded assailants hurled Molotov cocktails inside the bank’s branch on Stadiou Street, igniting a deadly fire that claimed the lives of three people.
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Marfin Bank: The moment of the deadly attack
As seen in the documentary footage, just after 2:00 PM employees were still at their workstations. Their attention, however, was fixed on the massive austerity protest march taking place outside the branch, as tensions on the street reached a boiling point. Moments later, a group of hooded individuals broke away from the crowd. At 2:07 PM, they smashed through the bank’s glass facade and hurled flammable liquid and Molotov cocktails into the interior, igniting the deadly blaze.
After the firebomb attack, the situation changed dramatically. Those working at the teller stations abandoned their posts and ran toward the back offices. One employee briefly turned back to retrieve a personal belonging before rushing after his colleagues.
Seconds later, as captured in the documentary footage, the first powerful explosion rocked the building. The initial Molotov cocktails had already landed inside the bank. Flames and thick black smoke spread with terrifying speed, turning the premises into a nightmare. Employees trapped on the upper floors desperately attempted to escape through small balconies.
The tragic toll of the deadly Marfin Bank attack
The scenes that unfolded in the aftermath were devastating. The raging fire triggered an emergency response from the fire department, whose access to the building was severely hampered by the large crowds gathered in the area.
The deadly attack of May 5th, 2010 claimed the lives of three victims: 36-year-old Epaminondas Tsakalis, 35-year-old Paraskevi Zoulia, and 32-year-old Angeliki Papathanasopoulou, who was pregnant at the time of her death.
