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Esther Padilla, spokesperson for the Castilla-La Mancha regional government, confirmed 10 fatalities and warned that the number would “surely rise.” The cause of the collision remains unknown.
What happened in the Spain train crash?
Spain’s rail infrastructure operator ADIF said the accident occurred on Wednesday morning in Toledo province. Padilla told state broadcaster TVE that both high-speed trains were travelling in the same direction, from Madrid towards Seville, when one struck the rear of the other while it was stationary. The impact knocked two carriages off the tracks.The collision involved a train operated by state-owned RENFE and another run by private rail company IRYO. Padilla said the RENFE train was carrying 397 passengers, while the IRYO train had 147 passengers on board.
Rescue efforts and rail disruptions
The crash prompted the suspension of rail services between Madrid, Ciudad Real and Andalusia. Passengers were reported injured, and civil protection authorities asked the town hall in nearby Urda to prepare a sports pavilion to receive those affected, the town’s mayor, Manuel Galán, told TVE.Emiliano García-Page, president of the Castilla-La Mancha regional government, said in a post on X that he was travelling to the crash site, as reported by Reuters.
Spain’s rail network faced another deadly crash in January
The latest accident comes after a deadly train crash in southern Spain in January that killed 45 people. In that incident, a train left the tracks and struck an oncoming train, making it the country’s deadliest rail disaster since a 2013 crash that killed 80 people.The January collision shook public confidence in Spain’s extensive high-speed rail network. Trains operated by RENFE and IRYO were also involved in that incident.