Two high-speed trains collided south of Madrid on Wednesday, killing at least 30 people and injuring many others. The crash occurred near Toledo in the Castile-La Mancha region, where emergency services rushed to the scene. Esther Padilla, spokesperson for the regional government, provided the death toll but cautioned "the figure might increase".
The collision involved a Madrid-Seville train operated by Renfe, the state-owned rail company, and a train from Iryo, a private operator. Images showed carriages from the Iryo train lying on their side after tumbling down an embankment.
Wednesday's crash prompted political parties to suspend most campaign activity linked to Spain's general election on November 29. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said he was "deeply saddened" by the accident, while Alberto Núñez Feijóo expressed "deep concern".
Santiago Abascal, leader of the far-right Vox party, said the latest crash was another sign of "the deterioration in Spain's infrastructure and institutions, which is frankly completely intolerable", referring to a similar fatal January train accident in Andalusia that killed 46 people.
Source: Financial Times Companies · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing