Spain high-speed train collision kills 30

A collision between two high-speed trains south of Madrid killed 30 people on Wednesday and the toll could rise, regional authorities said in Spain's second such disaster this year.

Images shared by local media showed the wreckage of two trains strewn on the tracks and an embankment, with emergency services rushing to the scene.

The accident in the central region of Castilla-La Mancha comes one month before Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who faced heavy criticism for the first disaster, seeks to overturn unfavourable polls in an early general election.

"The information we are receiving is not good at all. There are at least 10 dead and it is possible that the number will increase," Esther Padilla, spokeswoman for the government of Castilla-La Mancha, told local media CMM.

People check their smartphones at Sevilla Santa Justa train station amid train delays and cancellations following the collision of two high-speed trains between the towns of Mora and Orgaz, in Seville, Spain, on Wednesday. Reuters

A spokesperson for the Spanish emergency services told AFP the trains collided just before 9:00 am (0800 GMT) in the municipality of Urda, around 130 kilometres (80 miles) south of Madrid.

"All resources are currently being deployed," the emergency services spokesperson said, including "several fire crews, three helicopters, and two mobile intensive care units".

Rail infrastructure company ADIF confirmed a collision had taken place, adding in a social media post that the high-speed rail line from Madrid to the south had been suspended.

Spanish rail company Iryo, which was also involved in a deadly collision earlier this year, confirmed in a statement that one of its trains was affected by the accident.

'Shocked'

Sanchez, who is seeking to extend his eight-year premiership in the November 29 vote, said on X that he was "shocked" by the accident and sent "my love, solidarity and support to all the victims and their families".

He cancelled his participation in a summit on obesity in Madrid after the news broke, while his Socialist party suspended all its campaign activities.

Spain's high-speed rail network has received huge investment in recent years, growing to become the world's second-largest after China and a source of national pride.

But Wednesday's accident comes after another collision between two high-speed trains outside the southern village of Adamuz in January left 46 dead, which raised major questions about security on the country's railways.

Both accidents happened on the line linking Madrid to the southern city of Seville. One of the country's busiest routes, it was Spain's first high-speed line when it opened in 1992 to coincide with the Seville universal exposition.

Agence France-Presse