Follow-up: Spain's Prime Minister Says Trust in High-Speed Rail 'Has Been Broken' After Crash Affecting People From at Least 23 Countries

The death toll from the collision of two high-speed trains near Urda, in Spain's Toledo province, on October 28 stands confirmed at 69. Visiting the crash site on Friday, October 30, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez publicly acknowledged: 'Trust in our high-speed railway has been broken.' He said his government's job is not only to understand what went wrong but to offer solutions so that a tragedy of this magnitude never happens again.

Sánchez said it was unacceptable for a country like Spain, with such a powerful high-speed rail system, to experience two accidents of this nature and magnitude within a single year. In January, two high-speed trains also collided near Adamuz in Córdoba province in southern Spain. Wednesday's crash happened on the Madrid–Seville high-speed line, when an AVE train operated by state company Renfe ran into the back of a stationary train of private operator Iryo; the two trains were carrying several hundred passengers between them.

Sánchez said the Spanish state was working tirelessly to provide information as quickly as possible to the families of the victims. Those killed or injured include people from at least 23 foreign countries, and people of as many as 27 nationalities may be among those affected, a figure he indicated could rise. The crash killed 69 people and injured more than 100; Spain has held national mourning for the victims.

The cause of the crash remains under investigation. Transport Minister Óscar Puente has said that a safety system failed earlier that morning, stopping all trains on the line, and that the control center then decided to resume traffic — a decision he called 'inexplicable' — adding that the two trains' drivers were not to blame. Puente is facing calls to resign. Sánchez committed his government to finding what caused the collision.

Spain's high-speed rail network is among the largest in the world, second only to China's, and has long been known for speed and safety; two major collisions within a single year have prompted a nationwide debate in Spain over rail safety and maintenance.

Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)

Photo: 图：西班牙首相 Pedro Sánchez（前排中央）与本届政府成员在首相府的合影（资料图，2024年11月）。照片：Pool Moncloa / Jose Manuel Álvarez，西班牙首相府（Ministry of the Presidency）发布，经 Wikimedia Commons。

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