Spain Rail Crash: RENFE and IRYO Trains Collide in Toledo
Officials say a computer malfunction and a command error led to the impact that killed 68 people.
By Nour Haddad ·
At least 68 people died in a high-speed train collision in central Spain on Wednesday.
The regional government of Castilla La Mancha confirmed the toll and reported that 58 others were hospitalized. The crash marked the second fatal rail accident in Spain this year. It occurred in the province of Toledo, involving two trains traveling south from Madrid to Seville. A state-owned RENFE train struck the rear of a stopped IRYO train. The impact derailed two carriages from the tail of the IRYO train and the front section of the RENFE train. Rescue crews searched the site through the day. Rail service was suspended between Madrid, Ciudad Real, and Andalusia.
Transport Minister Oscar Puente said the accident resulted from a specific sequence of errors. He described the central command decision to restart the RENFE train as inexplicable. Puente stated that a security system on a 63-kilometer stretch failed at 8:30 a.m. due to a computer malfunction. This failure caused all trains on that segment to stop. The command center then ordered the RENFE train to move again without speed restrictions. The collision happened at 8:53 a.m. Puente noted that a stop signal remained active on the line. He said the train should have remained stationary or moved at reduced speed. Authorities were still determining the train's speed. Puente suggested it could have been traveling at 200 kilometers per hour.
Passengers described the sudden violence of the impact. Samy Paul, a British tourist on the RENFE train, said everything fell apart when the crash occurred. He reported seeing blood and smashed carriages. David Gomez, a construction worker nearby, helped rescue people through windows and fences. He told El Pais that he treated victims with first-aid kits until emergency services arrived. He recalled pulling a young woman from the wreckage and finding a piece of her leg.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez visited the site and declared three days of national mourning. He called the double accident unacceptable for Spain. Sanchez faces a national election on Nov. 29. King Felipe VI also visited the crash location. The royal family issued a statement expressing grief for the families of the victims. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Europe mourns with Spain. The Spanish soccer federation postponed all 24 Copa del Rey games scheduled for Wednesday.
The January crash in southern Spain killed 46 people when an IRYO train jumped the tracks. That accident involved the same two operators. It was the deadliest in Spain since 2013. Spain has 3,900 kilometers of high-speed track. The network opened to private competition recently. IRYO began operating in Spain in 2022. Union representative Joan Rodriguez said increased traffic from privatization strains infrastructure. He told TVE that the liberalization was not matched by necessary upkeep.
