At least 64 people were killed in a train crash that occurred on the morning of October 28 near the Urda station in Spain’s Toledo province. This was confirmed by sources in the government of the Spanish autonomous community of Castilla-La Mancha, UNN reports, citing El País.
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Its president, Emiliano García-Page, fears there may be more victims.
Another 58 injured people have been hospitalized, 15 of them in critical condition.
Transport Minister Óscar Puente called the accident "absolutely incredible," explaining that it was caused by a failure of LZB, one of the track safety systems. He added that, without fixing this malfunction, an "inexplicable" order was given to resume train traffic, which was a "wrong decision."
The Civil Guard and the Railway Accident Investigation Commission are questioning the operator of the control center who was regulating traffic on the Madrid–Seville high-speed line when the collision occurred.
The AVE train collided with an Iryo train; two carriages derailed.
More than 540 people were on the two trains involved in the accident.
On October 28, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry told journalists that it was currently clarifying whether any Ukrainians were among those affected.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez arrived at the crash site accompanied by the interior minister. Rail traffic between Madrid and Andalusia has been suspended, while family support centers have been opened at Atocha station and in Seville. The government and political parties canceled their events for today.