Spain, Jan 19: A high-speed rail collision in southern Spain killed at least 21 people and injured dozens more on Sunday evening after a derailed passenger train jumped tracks into the path of oncoming traffic.
Transport Minister Oscar Puente confirmed the death toll after midnight, noting that while all survivors have been evacuated from the wreckage, the number of fatalities could rise as recovery efforts continue.
The disaster unfolded at 7:45 p.m. local time near Cordoba when the rear section of an Iryo company train traveling from Malaga to Madrid suddenly left the rails. The derailed tail end slammed into a Renfe public service train carrying 200 passengers toward Huelva.
According to rail operator Adif, the force of the impact sent the first two carriages of the Renfe train plunging down a four-meter embankment.
“We have a very difficult night ahead,” noted Antonio Sanz, Andalusia’s regional health chief. He stated that 73 injured passengers were transported to six different hospitals across the region.
The cause of the crash remains a mystery to investigators. Puente mentioned that the incident occurred on a flat, straight section of track that had been recently renovated in May. He also said the Iryo train involved was less than four years old, describing the circumstances as “truly strange.”
First responders described a scene of massive destruction in the darkness. Cordoba firefighter chief Francisco Carmona told national radio RNE that one of the trains was found “badly mangled” with at least four wagons completely off the tracks. Because the accident occurred in a remote, difficult-to-reach area, local residents assisted emergency crews by bringing blankets and water to the survivors.
Salvador Jimenez, a journalist for broadcaster RTVE who was traveling on one of the trains, recounted the terrifying moment of impact. “There was a moment when it felt like an earthquake and the train had indeed derailed,” Jimenez said during a phone interview with the network. He described passengers using emergency hammers to shatter windows to escape the leaning carriages.
Iryo issued a statement saying the company “deeply lamented what has happened” and is cooperating with authorities. Spanish military emergency relief units and the Red Cross joined the massive rescue operation. In response to the tragedy, Adif announced that all train services between Madrid and cities in Andalusia are suspended for Monday.
