At least 68 killed in high-speed train collision in central Spain
· France 24At least 68 people were killed and a further 80 injured – with the toll likely to rise – when two high-speed trains collided in Spain on Wednesday, the second deadly accident in less than a year on the line connecting Madrid to the southern Andalusia region, regional authorities said.
Footage from regional Castilla-La Mancha Television showed a derailed train with at least one carriage remaining on an elevated section of track while twisted metal, broken panels and wreckage could be seen strewn across an embankment beneath the line.
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Miguel, a passenger travelling with several colleagues in the rear car of one of the trains, described to national radio network, COPE, the moment of the accident.
"We heard a massive roar, a truly enormous thud that went on for 10 seconds, as if the train were about to derail. Through the right-hand window, we could see a wrecked train – I imagine it must have been the other one," he said.
Rail operator Adif detailed that the incident occurred between the towns of Mora and Orgaz.
"Traffic on the Madrid-Andalusia high-speed rail line has been suspended following a rear-end collision between two trains," Adif said in a message posted on X.
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The first toll given by Castilla-la Mancha regional government reported 10 deaths, along with a warning the figure would likely rise.
"The information we are receiving is not good at all... It is possible that the number will increase," Esther Padilla, spokeswoman for the government of central region, Castilla-La Mancha, told local media, CMM.
Padilla told state broadcaster TVE that the accident involved two high-speed trains heading in the same direction from Madrid to Seville and that one ran into the tail of the other while it was stopped, knocking two of its cars off the track. She added that the cause of the crash was unknown.
A Renfe and an Iryo train crashed just after 9am (0800 GMT), causing two Iryo wagons to derail, Padilla said, adding that the cause and number of injuries were still being determined.
She noted that 397 passengers were aboard the RENFE train and 147 passengers on the IRYO train.
Spain’s Transport Minister Óscar Puente said that the accident was caused by what he called the “inexplicable” order from a central command center for Spain’s trains after a security system had failed. He said the train engineers were not to blame.
Puente said that at 8:30am the security system on a stretch of 63 kilometers (39 miles) stopped working due to a computer malfunction, causing all trains on that stretch to stop. But the central command told the RENFE train to start running again without any speed restrictions, and it ended up colliding with the stopped IRYO train at 8:53am.
Puente said that the train should never have been told to start moving again since there was still a “stop signal” active that line. And if it had, at least it should have been told to go at reduced speed.
Puente said they were still studying information to see how fast the train was going, but it could have been at 200kph (124mph) for that stretch of the track.
“I am not attributing responsibility to anyone, I am just stating the facts,” Puente said.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said in a post on X he was "shocked by the serious train accident in Toledo" and expressed his "affection, solidarity and support to all the victims and their families".
"All of Spain is in mourning," Sanchez said from the scene in the central region of Castilla-La Mancha, adding that it was "not acceptable for a country like Spain" to suffer two such disasters in the same year.
The prime minister called for three days of mourning.
Spain’s King Felipe VI visited the crash site. He and Queen Letizia said in a short statement on X that they were following news of the accident.
“We are deeply saddened and concerned by the train accident in Urda (Toledo),” the royal couple said. “We share in the grief of the families and loved ones of those who lost their lives, and we send our heartfelt support to the injured and all those affected.”
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said “My heart goes out to the victims’ families and loved ones. Today, Europe mourns with you.”
Spain's football federation postponed all 24 Copa del Rey games scheduled on Wednesday.
Manuel Galan, the mayor of Urda near the central city of Toledo, said he had been asked by emergency services to prepare a sports hall to accommodate the injured.
The prime minister's agenda, published on the Spanish government's website, was promptly cleared for the day. The opposition People's Party also cancelled all campaign events, a spokesperson said.
The collision comes nine months after an accident between high-speed trains belonging to the same operators on the same line that killed 46 people.
That crash in January, which occurred after a train derailed and smashed into an oncoming train near Adamuz, in Cordoba province, triggered a debate about the level of investment in railway maintenance in recent years.
(FRANCE 24 with AP, Reuters)