At least 68 people dead in high-speed Spain train crash
It is the second deadly high-speed train collision in Spain this year.
Key points
- At least 68 people were killed and 50 injured when two high-speed trains collided in Spain's Toledo province on the Madrid to Seville line.
- Transport Minister Óscar Puente said the control system at Urda failed and a restarted train traveled 25km before hitting a stopped train at high speed.
- Iryo said its train was struck from behind by a Renfe train, and Adif is investigating the sequence of events.
At least 68 people have died and 50 were injured in a collision between two high-speed trains in the Spanish province of Toledo, authorities said. The crash happened shortly before 9:15 a.m. local time on the Madrid to Seville line.
More than 500 passengers were on board the two trains, according to newspaper El País. The regional government of Castilla-La Mancha confirmed the death toll, which is higher than another high-speed crash in southern Spain that killed 45 people in January.
What officials said
Transport Minister Óscar Puente told reporters in Madrid that the control system at the nearby town of Urda failed and six trains were stopped. One was allowed to restart and traveled 25km before hitting a stopped train at high speed, he said, calling it "inexplicable" how this had happened.
Emiliano García-Page, president of the Castilla-La Mancha region, said 24 people died on a train operated by Renfe and the rest on a train operated by Iryo. Iryo said its train was "struck from behind" by the Renfe train and that the cause was "still unknown."
If there has been any negligence, it will come to light
— Pedro Sanchez
Investigation and political reaction
Railway infrastructure manager Adif is investigating the sequence of events surrounding the accident, Spanish news agency EFE reported.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on X that he was "shocked" by the accident. "If there has been any negligence, it will come to light," he later told a press conference, adding that any safety system failures would be addressed "with the utmost firmness." Santiago Abascal, leader of the far-right Vox party, blamed Sanchez's government in a post on X.
