Spanish Train Crash Kills at Least 64 People South of Madrid

A high-speed rail service slammed into another train about 60 miles south of Madrid on Wednesday, killing at least 64 people in the second major accident on Spain’s rail network this year.

Dozens more were also injured, said Emiliano García Page, president of Castilla-La Mancha region, where the accident occurred.

The crash occurred before 9 a.m. near the city of Toledo. Local authorities deployed ambulances, police, helicopters and Red Cross personnel to the scene, said an official with the region’s Civil Protection services. The Spanish government is also sending the army’s Emergency Military Unit, a special task force for civilian disasters and accidents.

Another crash in January, further south, killed more than 40 people and provoked intense scrutiny of the government’s management of rail infrastructure, once seen as a point of national pride.

Both accidents happened on the line running south from Madrid and involved state-owned train operator Renfe and Iryo, a rival operator controlled by the Italian state.

Wednesday’s collision occurred when a Renfe high-speed train hit an Iryo train between the villages of Los Yébenes and Urda, according to an official at Spain’s railway infrastructure manager Adif. The impact derailed at least two carriages on the Iryo train and all traffic on the high-speed line between Madrid and Seville was immediately interrupted.

Several trains are now halted as Adif helps travelers reach stations.

A spokesperson for Spain’s Transportation Ministry said the initial assessment suggests human error, potentially by an Adif rail traffic controller. The Adif official declined to comment on what might have caused the accident.

The crash is likely to become a major talking point in Spain’s upcoming national election on Nov. 29. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and several ministers canceled their appointments for the day, as did the opposition leader.

Even before the cause or death toll was known, Santiago Abascal, leader of the far-right Vox party, blamed the accident on the “abandonment, ruin and betrayal suffered by Spaniards” at the hands of Sánchez’s government.

Vox is polling third and could play a decisive role in forming the next government, with polls showing the conservative People’s Party in the lead.

Spain’s last major railway accident sparked a nationwide debate over the safety of the country’s nearly 4,000 kilometers of high-speed rail network, the world’s second-largest, according to the International Union of Railways.

That incident remains under investigation, but the opposition blames the government for neglecting infrastructure, from railways to roads.

Some 40 million people traveled on Spain’s commercial high-speed rail services in 2024, up 77% from 2019, according to data from the national competition authority. The increase partly reflects population growth as well as a surge in tourism, with Spain now receiving close to 100 million visitors a year.

Top photo: The crash marks the second major accident on Spain’s high-speed rail network this year. Photographer: Angel Garcia/Bloomberg.