At least 64 people have been killed after two high-speed trains collided in Toledo province in central Spain, in the country’s second major train accident this year.
The trains were travelling in the same direction on the line from the Spanish capital, Madrid, to Seville in the south-west of the country. One ran into the tail of the other that had stopped, knocking two of its cars off the track. Authorities said the cause of the crash was not yet known.
Footage broadcast by the regional channel CMM TV showed a derailed train with at least one carriage remaining on an elevated section of track. Twisted metal, broken panels and wreckage could be seen strewn across an embankment beneath the line.
The Castilla-La Mancha regional government said the death toll had risen to 64 as rescue teams continued to search through the wreckage of the derailed carriages. Castilla-La Mancha’s leader, Emiliano García-Page, told reporters that more victims were likely as “it has not yet been possible to reach the bottom of the carriages”.
Miguel, a passenger travelling with several colleagues in the rear car of one of the trains, described the moment of the accident to Cope radio. “We heard a massive roar, a truly enormous thud that went on for 10 seconds, as if the train were about to derail,” he said. “Through the right-hand window, we could see a wrecked train – I imagine it must have been the other one.”
The collision involved a train from Spain’s state-owned Renfe company and the private rail company Iryo. It appeared the Renfe train had collided with the Iryo service, knocking two of its carriages off the track.
Trains from those two companies were also involved in a crash in Adamuz in January in which 46 people were killed.
Manuel Galán, the mayor of Urda near the city of Toledo, said he had been asked by emergency services to prepare a sports hall to accommodate the injured.
Spain’s main political parties, which are gearing up for next month’s general election, suspended their planned activities for the day.
The prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, expressed his shock at news of the crash. “I remain in constant contact with the transport minister, and with the president of Castilla-La Mancha,” he said in a post on X. “Emergency services are working on the ground to assist those affected and ensure their safety, in coordination with all the involved administrations. My love, solidarity and support to all the victims and their families.”
The opposition People’s party leader, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, said on X: “Very concerned about the information we are getting about a new rail accident. The priority now is to attend to the victims and support their families. My full support to the emergency teams working on the ground.”
Spain’s football federation postponed all 24 Copa del Rey games scheduled for Wednesday.
The wreckage of Wednesday’s crash reminded many of the aftermath of the train collision in January, when an Iryo train jumped the track and hit an oncoming Renfe train. That sent the first two cars of the impacted train plummeting down a four-metre (13-foot) slope. That crash was the deadliest in Spain since a 2013 crash that killed 80 people.
Reuters and Associated Press contributed to this report
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