At least 10 people have been killed after a high-speed train crashed into another in central Spain, derailing two carriages.
At least 10 people have been killed after a high-speed train crashed into the rear of another train that had stopped in central Spain on Wednesday, derailing two carriages, authorities have said.
Esther Padilla, spokesperson for the Castilla-La Mancha region, confirmed the deaths, warning that the toll was likely to rise as rescue and emergency operations continued.
Spain’s rail infrastructure operator, ADIF, said the accident occurred on Wednesday morning in the province of Toledo. Rail services between Madrid, Ciudad Real and Andalusia were suspended following the crash.
Padilla told Spanish state broadcaster TVE that the accident involved two high-speed trains travelling in the same direction from Madrid to Seville. One train struck the rear of the other while it was stationary, causing two carriages to leave the tracks. Authorities had yet to establish the cause of the collision.
The trains involved belonged to Spain’s state-owned RENFE and private rail operator IRYO. According to Padilla, the RENFE train was carrying 397 passengers, while the IRYO train had 147 passengers on board.
Manuel Galán, mayor of the nearby town of Urda, told TVE that passengers had sustained injuries. He said civil protection authorities had asked the town council to prepare a sports pavilion to receive and assist passengers affected by the crash.
Emiliano García-Page, president of the Castilla-La Mancha region, announced on X that he was travelling to the scene of the accident.
The crash comes months after another deadly train accident in southern Spain in January, when 45 people died after a train derailed and collided with an oncoming train.
That incident was Spain’s deadliest rail disaster since a 2013 crash that killed 80 people. It also raised concerns about the safety of the country’s extensive high-speed rail network.