At least 64 people were killed on Wednesday when two high-speed trains collided in Spain, authorities and rescue workers said, in the second deadly accident this year on the line linking Madrid with southern Andalusia.
The Renfe and Iryo trains crashed just after 9 a.m. local time (0800 GMT) near Toledo on the Madrid–Seville line. A person briefed on the disaster said the Iryo train had stopped on orders from infrastructure manager Adif after a signal fault, and the Renfe service then struck the stationary train at high speed, derailing carriages of both trains. Renfe said it had been authorised to continue and collided with the Iryo train that had remained stationary “for reasons we don’t know.” The exact sequence remains under investigation.
What officials and witnesses described
Rescue workers were still scouring the wreckage for more bodies. An earlier Castilla-La Mancha briefing had put the confirmed toll at 10 and said it would rise; later reports put the death toll at at least 64. Padilla had said several carriages plunged down an embankment.
Padilla said 147 people had been travelling on the Iryo train and 397 on the Renfe train. Television images from the region showed a derailed train with at least one carriage still on an elevated section of track, and twisted metal and wreckage scattered across an embankment below.
A passenger named Miguel, travelling with colleagues in the rear car of one of the trains, described a “massive roar” and a thud lasting about 10 seconds. Through the right-hand window, he said, he could see a wrecked train that he believed was the other service.
Response on the ground and in Madrid
Manuel Galan, mayor of the nearby town of Urda, said emergency services had asked the town council to prepare facilities, including a sports hall, for passengers and the injured.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s official agenda for the day was cleared. On X he wrote that he was “shocked by the serious train accident in Toledo” and offered “affection, solidarity, and support to all the victims and their families.” The opposition People’s Party cancelled all campaign events ahead of a snap election set for November 29, a party spokesperson said.
Timeline: what has happened so far
- January: A high-speed train derailed and struck an oncoming train near Adamuz in Cordoba province, killing 46 people. The trains belonged to the same operators on the same Madrid–Andalusia corridor and sparked debate over railway maintenance spending.
- Nine months later (Wednesday): Renfe and Iryo trains collide just after 9 a.m. on the Madrid–Seville line; at least 64 are confirmed dead after a Renfe train struck a stationary Iryo service; several carriages derailed. The cause is still under investigation.
Aasan alfaaz mein
Spain mein Wednesday subah do tez raftaar trains takra gayi hain. Abhi tak kam az kam 64 log mar chuke hain, aur rescue teams abhi scene par hain. Yeh Madrid se Seville wali line par hua, jahan is saal pehle bhi ek bada accident ho chuka tha. Wajah abhi clear nahi; emergency teams passengers aur zakhmiyon ki madad kar rahi hain.
