Rescuers searched the wreckage of two high-speed trains in central Spain on Thursday as the death toll rose to a provisional 74, making it the country's second fatal high-speed rail disaster this year.
Spain's public broadcaster RTVE reported the revised toll on Thursday, as emergency crews continued searching damaged carriages near Urda, in Toledo province, south of Madrid. The figure was also reported by several Spanish media outlets.
Earlier, Castilla-La Mancha regional leader Emiliano García-Page had put the death toll at 69 after human remains were discovered during overnight recovery operations. Heavy cranes were deployed to lift overturned carriages as teams searched for further victims.
The collision occurred at around 09:00 local time on Wednesday, when a high-speed train struck a stationary train. More than 500 passengers were reportedly travelling on the two trains, with survivors describing how they smashed windows to escape.
The Spanish government declared three days of national mourning for the victims.
Pope Leo sent condolences to the families of those killed, wished the injured a speedy recovery and expressed support for everyone affected by the disaster, the Vatican said. He also encouraged rescue workers to continue their efforts.
Earlier reports said 57 injured people remained in hospital, although regional media subsequently reported that the number had fallen to around 50.
Spain's Interior Ministry said more than 800 military and police personnel had been deployed as part of the emergency response, supported by over 200 vehicles, three helicopters, a mobile command post, drones, mounted units and search dogs.
The crash has renewed debate over railway safety in Spain, home to Europe's longest high-speed rail network. It comes just nine months after another fatal collision in January involving the same rail operators on the same line.
Transport Minister Óscar Puente said on Wednesday that several trains had stopped automatically following a signalling failure.
A high-speed train operated by state-run Renfe was then authorised to resume its journey at normal speed, despite an Iryo train remaining stationary on the track ahead.
Investigators are examining why the Renfe train was allowed to proceed. The circumstances surrounding the authorisation remain under investigation, and no final cause has been established.
The Spanish train drivers' union SEMAF warned against drawing premature conclusions.
“We wish to exercise caution until we have a detailed understanding of exactly what happened, so as not to engage in speculation,” the union said in a statement late on Wednesday.
SEMAF also went ahead with a previously planned 24-hour strike on Thursday, demanding structural improvements to railway safety. The union said it was considering further action.
Meanwhile, the Spanish trade union CSIF called for Puente's resignation. In a statement issued on Wednesday, it accused the minister of shifting blame to a traffic manager during his press conference instead of “taking responsibility”.
The disaster has fuelled public anger, with around 500 protesters gathering outside Spain's Transport Ministry to demand answers.
Some protesters threw bottles and flares at police, while others carried a banner describing the government as “criminals in power under the '78 regime”.
Police fired tear gas as officers moved to clear the crowd from the roadway. No arrests or injuries were reported.
The collision has also disrupted campaigning ahead of Spain's snap election on 29 November, prompting the leaders of the country's two main political parties to suspend campaign events.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez travelled to the Toledo area on Thursday to oversee the emergency response, while Alberto Núñez Feijóo, leader of the centre-right People's Party (PP), visited Urda, near the crash site.
Feijóo demanded political accountability over the disaster, while Sánchez pledged a thorough investigation and stressed the need to restore confidence in Spain's high-speed rail network.
In a televised address near the scene, Sánchez said that “all of Spain” was in mourning.
“It is unacceptable for a country like Spain to suffer two high-speed accidents in the same year,” Sánchez said.
A judge has ordered a two-kilometre exclusion zone around the crash site to preserve evidence as investigators work to establish how the collision occurred.
With recovery operations continuing and the death toll still provisional, attention is turning to the decisions and safety failures that may have contributed to one of Spain's deadliest rail disasters in recent years.
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Rescuers searched the wreckage of two high-speed trains in central Spain on Thursday as the death toll rose to a provisional 74, making it the country's second fatal high-speed rail disaster this year.
At least 68 people have been killed after two high-speed trains collided in Spain on Wednesday, in the second deadly rail disaster in less than a year on a major route linking Madrid with the southern Andalusia region.
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