At least 30 people have been killed after two high-speed trains collided in Spain’s central Toledo province on Wednesday, with authorities warning that the death toll could rise further. A trainee railway worker who had gone missing following the crash has since been confirmed dead, while the driver of an AVE high-speed train remains unaccounted for, according to Spanish media reports.
The collision occurred shortly after 9 am local time on the Madrid-Seville line, near the town of Urda. A Renfe train struck the rear of a stationary Iryo train, causing two carriages to derail, with some reportedly falling down an embankment. Emergency services rushed to the scene as rescue teams worked to reach passengers trapped inside the damaged coaches.
What happened?
Spain’s rail infrastructure operator Adif confirmed that traffic on the Madrid-Andalusia high-speed line had been suspended following the collision. The accident involved a Renfe AVE service and an Iryo train travelling in the same direction towards southern Spain.
According to Castilla-La Mancha regional government spokesperson Esther Padilla, the Renfe train was carrying 397 passengers, while the Iryo service had 147 passengers on board, including a baby.
This puts the total number of passengers at 544.
Initial reports from Spanish newspaper El País suggested that the collision may have resulted from human error following a failure in the main signalling system. Government sources cited by the newspaper said the system had switched to manual operation after the failure, leaving several trains halted in the area.
An operator at Madrid’s Atocha control centre allegedly instructed the Renfe train to proceed despite the Iryo train obstructing the track, according to the preliminary account. These claims remain subject to investigation, and authorities have not officially established the cause of the crash.
Rescue operations underway, driver still missing
Emergency services deployed medical helicopters and mobilised hospitals in Toledo and Alcázar de San Juan to treat the injured. Rescue teams focused on the two most severely damaged carriages, where passengers were trapped amid twisted metal and wreckage.
Health Minister Mónica García said the impact had been severe and warned that the situation could worsen as rescue operations continued. Injured passengers were being transferred to hospitals according to the seriousness of their conditions.
Passenger and journalist Miguel Ángel Pérez Laguna told Spanish broadcaster Capital Radio that the impact was extremely strong, describing how the train’s interior was thrown from side to side.
The mayor of nearby Urda, Manuel Galán, said emergency services had asked the local council to prepare a sports pavilion to accommodate passengers and those requiring assistance. Regional president Emiliano García-Page also travelled to the crash site as authorities coordinated the response.
Not Spain’s first rail tragedy this year
The collision is the latest major railway disaster to hit Spain this year. In January, a high-speed train derailed near Adamuz in Córdoba province and collided with an oncoming Renfe train, killing 46 people and injuring hundreds, according to reports at the time.
That disaster triggered scrutiny of railway maintenance and infrastructure investment, as well as concerns about the safety of Spain’s extensive high-speed rail network. The latest collision, involving trains operated by Renfe and Iryo, has renewed those concerns.
Investigators will now seek to establish what caused Wednesday’s crash, including whether the reported signalling failure and possible human error contributed to the collision.