Spain, Jan 19: Spanish authorities have launched a comprehensive inquiry into a deadly high-speed train collision that claimed 21 lives near Cordoba on Sunday. Transport Minister Oscar Puente told reporters that a full investigation into the causes of the derailment could take up to a month, though he noted that the infrastructure and the rolling stock involved were both relatively new.
The accident involved a private Iryo train and a public Renfe train, which collided after the Malaga-to-Madrid service derailed and swung into the opposite track. The Renfe train, heading toward Huelva, bore the brunt of the collision. Maria Belen Moya Rojas, the regional Civil Protection chief, noted that the site’s geography made the initial rescue operation particularly challenging for the military and medical teams.
“The situation at the crash site is very serious,” Sanz said while coordinating the medical response for the 73 people hospitalized. Witnesses at the scene reported seeing survivors crawling through broken windows and navigating steep slopes to reach safety.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen expressed her condolences via social media, stating that the victims were in her thoughts. As the cleanup begins, the Spanish government is focusing on identifying the remaining victims and clearing the wreckage from the vital southern rail corridor.
