Spain is shocked. At least 39 people were killed in a train accident in Andalusia on Sunday evening. More than 170 were injured, some very seriously. At the time of going to press, 48 were in hospital, many of them in the intensive care unit.
On the high-speed line that connects the south of Spain with the capital Madrid, several wagons in the back of a train from the Mediterranean city of Málaga to Madrid jumped off the tracks around 7:45 p.m. An oncoming high-speed train from Madrid bound for Huelva on the Atlantic ran into it. Several wagons fell down the slope. The platoon leader of this convoy is also among the dead. There were over 500 passengers on both trains at the time of the accident.
The rescue workers had difficulty getting to the crashed wagons. According to the Spanish civil protection, the terrain is very impassable. The first on site were the mayor of the nearby town of Adamuz and his municipal police. Residents brought blankets and water to the scene of the accident. Others helped with quads and ATVs.
The Spanish Guardia Civil police are working hard to identify the dead. A total of 220 police officers are on duty. The Red Cross has set up a field hospital in Adamuz. A psychological emergency service has been set up for people who miss friends and relatives. Train traffic between Madrid and Andalusia has not yet been able to resume.
Visibly shocked
Andalusian Prime Minister Juanma Moreno, visibly shocked, said after visiting the scene of the accident: “The crashed wagons are a pile of compressed scrap metal. There is little hope that there are any survivors inside.”
Spanish Transport Minister Oscar Puentes described the accident as “extremely strange”. It happened on a completely straight section of road. According to Puente, who gave a press conference in the crisis center in Madrid’s Atocha train station on the night of the accident before traveling to the scene of the accident, the causes of the accident are still unclear.
The tracks were new, as was the train that jumped off the track. It was bought by Iryo, a private competitor of the former Spanish state railway Renfe, just under four years ago. The last inspection was carried out four days ago.
Competition through low prices
The oncoming train belongs to Renfe. It is the first accident with victims since high-speed rail was privatized six years ago and new providers were approved. The investigation into the cause of the accident can take months. Renfe rules out excessive speed as the cause. Both trains were traveling at less than 210 km/h.
Iryo has 20 trains in Spain, which – according to the company – are among the most modern trains operating in Spain. Iryo is owned by the Italian state railway Trenitalia and several Spanish companies in the travel industry. So far, Iryo is making losses because the company is trying to compete with Renfe through low prices. The business plan calls for reaching profitability between 2026 and 2027.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez canceled his participation in the World Economic Forum in Davos and traveled to the scene of the accident. The royal couple also canceled a visit to Greece and wanted to visit Córdoba on Tuesday, where a large number of the victims are in hospital.