High-Speed Collision in Toledo Kills at Least 30 Passengers

A high-speed train operated by the state-owned company RENFE collided with the rear of a stationary service run by the private operator IRYO on Wednesday morning in the province of Toledo, central Spain. The impact derailed two carriages from the IRYO train, killing at least 30 people according to local media reports.

Spanish authorities initially confirmed ten deaths. Esther Padilla, the spokeswoman for the Castilla La Mancha regional government, told state broadcaster TVE that the death toll was expected to rise. Later reports from the Spanish state news agency EFE and other outlets indicated the number of fatalities had reached at least 30.

Padilla stated that both trains were traveling in the same direction from Madrid toward Seville and carried a combined total of 544 passengers. The RENFE service held 397 passengers, while the IRYO train carried 147. The cause of the collision remained unknown as of the initial reports. The crash occurred on a flat stretch of track between the towns of Urda and Los Yébenes, surrounded by fields. One car was described as shredded into metal fragments, with debris scattered down a gravel slope.

Emergency services focused on extracting survivors and bodies from the two most damaged cars. Injured passengers were transported to various hospitals in the region. Mónica García, the Spanish Health Minister, noted that the high speed of the impact suggested a severe outcome. The rail system operator ADIF suspended service between Madrid, Ciudad Real, and Andalusia following the incident.

This event marks the second major train accident in Spain this year. In January, a derailment in southern Spain killed 45 people when a train left the track and struck an oncoming service. That incident was the deadliest in the country since a 2013 crash that claimed 80 lives. The January crash involved trains from the same two operators, RENFE and IRYO.

IRYO, an Italian-owned company, said it activated security protocols and was coordinating with authorities. Manuel Galán, the mayor of Urda, said civil protection officials requested that his town hall prepare a sports pavilion to treat injured passengers. A military emergency brigade was deployed to assist firefighters, police, and other emergency services at the site.

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez canceled his schedule to focus on the response. On the social platform X, he described himself as dismayed by the serious accident and stated that emergency services were attending to affected passengers. Emiliano García-Page, the regional president of Castilla La Mancha, posted that he was traveling to the crash site.