Rescuers searched desperately through wrecked carriages on Thursday (October 29, 2026) in the hope of finding more survivors of Spain’s second deadly high-speed train crash this year, which has so far claimed 68 lives.
Spain’s government has declared three days of national mourning for those killed when one high-speed train hit another. A state-run Renfe train was then authorised to proceed at normal speed even though there was a stationary Iryo-operated train ahead. Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez was due to travel to Toledo on Thursday morning to take part in a meeting to monitor and coordinate the emergency response. Spanish Transport Minister Oscar Puente said on Wednesday the crash happened after several trains stopped automatically due to a signal failure.
SEMAF, the Spanish train drivers’ union, said it did not want to speculate on the cause of the crash. “We wish to exercise caution until we have a detailed understanding of exactly what happened, so as not to engage in speculation,” SEMAF said in a statement late on Wednesday. Train drivers would go ahead with the strike that had already been planned before the accident to press for structural changes in railway safety, SEMAF said, adding that it was studying further action.
“Rescue teams are still working very carefully, because we still cannot say with certainty that there are no more victims trapped in the twisted wreckage,” Esther Padilla, a spokeswoman for the regional government of Castilla-La Mancha, told TVE.
