High-Speed Train Collision in Southern Spain Kills at Least 21

By : Mweru Mbugua 

At least 21 people were killed and dozens injured after a high-speed passenger train derailed and collided with another oncoming train in southern Spain on Sunday night, authorities said

The crash occurred near Adamuz in Cordoba province, about 360 kilometres south of Madrid, when a Malaga-to-Madrid Iryo-operated train derailed and veered onto an adjacent track, smashing into a Renfe train travelling from Madrid to Huelva. The impact pushed the Renfe train off the tracks and down a railway embankment

Spain’s interior ministry confirmed that at least 75 people were hospitalised, with 15 in serious condition. Andalucia regional president Juanma Moreno warned that the death toll could rise as rescue operations continued into daylight, noting that heavy machinery was required to remove mangled metal and search for additional victims

“The force of the accident was very strong,” Moreno said. “We may still find more bodies”

Video footage shared on social media showed emergency crews pulling passengers from overturned and twisted carriages under floodlights. Some survivors escaped through shattered windows, while others were carried away on stretchers

El Pais newspaper reported that the 27-year-old driver of the Madrid-to-Huelva train was among those killed. Authorities said there were around 400 passengers on the two trains, most of them Spanish nationals returning to or leaving Madrid after the weekend

Witnesses described scenes of panic and confusion. “There were people screaming, luggage falling from shelves,” one passenger told public broadcaster TVE. Another survivor said she was still trembling after the impact

According to reports, the Renfe train was travelling at about 200 kilometres per hour at the time of the collision. The speed of the Iryo train before it derailed remains unclear.

Spanish Transport Minister Oscar Puente said the cause of the crash was not yet known, describing it as “really strange” given that the derailment happened on a straight section of track that had been renewed in May

 Also read : Two Arrested in KCSE Results Forgery Scam

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez described the incident as “a night of deep pain for our country,” while the royal household said the King and Queen were closely following developments

Rail network operator Adif confirmed that the Iryo train derailed at around 7:45 p.m. local time, crashing onto the adjacent track and causing the second train to derail. Most of the fatalities and serious injuries were reported in the first two carriages of the Renfe train, which plunged down the embankment

Emergency services evacuated passengers from the Iryo train within hours, but rescue efforts on the badly damaged Renfe carriages were complicated by twisted metal and narrow access points

Local authorities set up a reception centre in Adamuz, where residents provided food and blankets to survivors as temperatures dropped overnight

Iryo, a private rail operator majority-owned by Italy’s state railway group Ferrovie dello Stato, said it deeply regretted the incident and had activated all emergency protocols.

Renfe said its derailment was caused by the Iryo train entering its path and that it was supporting passengers and families. All rail services between Madrid and Andalucia have been suspended as investigations continue