On a Wednesday morning in central Spain, near the town of Urda, two trains came to occupy the same stretch of track, and sixty-nine people lost their lives in the collision that followed. The dead range from a young athlete at the start of her life to a former minister whose public career once shaped the nation's labour laws. Their families now move between hospitals and the forensic institute in Toledo, giving swabs so that names can be matched to the lost, while the country, already marked by another rail tragedy this year, waits to learn how such a thing could happen.
Young athlete and former minister among 69 killed in Spain train crash near Urda
69 people were killed and more than 100 injured, many seriously, with families searching hospitals for missing relatives.
Families have been giving DNA samples to put names to the dead.
Mark
Sixty-nine dead, and the names are only starting to come out. Why do these first few matter?
Mimi
Because they turn a number into people. A 24-year-old long jumper, a former minister, a Civil Guard officer of 31, a tax lawyer. Each had a club, an office or a force that publicly mourned them.
Mark
Fátima Báñez is a complicated figure, isn't she?
Mimi
She was the first woman to serve as employment minister, and her 2012 labour reform sparked mass protests. Yet her own confederation and Isabel Díaz Ayuso both paid tribute to her. Grief and politics sit side by side here.
Luke
Let me mark what we actually know. The 69 dead and more than 100 injured are the reported figures, and the source itself says the toll could rise.
Mark
And the cause?
Luke
Reporting says a high-speed Renfe train hit a stationary Iryo train on the same track. Why that happened isn't established in what we have. Nothing here says who was at fault.
Mimi
The families in Toledo giving DNA samples tell you identification isn't finished.
Luke
Right, and the hospital searches are described as reports, not a confirmed count of missing people.
Mark
What should readers watch for?
Mimi
The investigation, and whether the toll changes. This is Spain's second rail disaster this year and its worst since 2013.
O Pulso
- A high-speed Renfe train slammed into an Iryo train that was standing still on the same track near Urda, and the impact tore carriages apart.
- More than one hundred people were injured, many seriously, and the toll of sixty-nine dead could still climb as hospitals keep fighting for lives.
- Families are running from hospital to hospital and lining up for DNA swabs in Toledo, searching for relatives who have not yet been accounted for.
- Grief and anger are spreading across Spain as names emerge, including a 24-year-old long jumper and a former employment minister.
- This is Spain's second rail disaster this year and its deadliest since 2013, so every answer the investigation gives will be scrutinised.
On a Wednesday morning in central Spain, near the town of Urda, two trains came to occupy the same stretch of track, and sixty-nine people lost their lives in the collision that followed. The dead range from a young athlete at the start of her life to a former minister whose public career once shaped the nation's labour laws. Their families now move between hospitals and the forensic institute in Toledo, giving swabs so that names can be matched to the lost, while the country, already marked by another rail tragedy this year, waits to learn how such a thing could happen.
In Toledo, families have been queuing at the main forensics institute to give DNA samples. The bodies of those killed on Wednesday morning, when a high-speed Renfe train collided with a stationary Iryo train near Urda in central Spain, have been brought there, and swabs are one of the few ways left to give the dead their names. Sixty-nine people died, and more than a hundred were hurt, many gravely.
Across the region, relatives are moving from hospital to hospital, searching for people who have not been accounted for. Officials have warned the toll may still rise. As the names come out, the shock is turning into grief and anger, and this is the second rail disaster in Spain this year, the worst since 2013.
Among the dead is Julieta Gallego, 24, a long jumper who competed for the Madrid club AD Sprint, whose best jump was 5.9 metres. Her club said its whole membership was heartbroken, and the Spanish athletics federation spoke of a life unjustly cut short. Also killed was Fátima Báñez, 59, a former employment minister who chaired the Spanish Confederation of Business Organizations and who had led the controversial 2012 labour reforms. Her death was mourned by politicians and business leaders alike. A Civil Guard officer, José Manuel Chacón, 31, was killed, as was Antonio Montero Domínguez, a tax lawyer and former tax inspector remembered as meticulous and tireless.
The toll may still change. For now, attention turns to the investigation into how two trains came to share a single track.
In Toledo, at the main forensics institute, families have been lining up to give DNA samples. They are there because the bodies of those killed in Wednesday morning's train crash near Urda, in central Spain, have been brought to the building, and swabs are one way to put names to the dead. The crash killed 69 people.
The collision involved a high-speed Renfe train and an Iryo train that was stationary on the same track. The impact derailed carriages and injured more than 100 people, many of them seriously. Reports describe relatives going from hospital to hospital across the region looking for people who have not been accounted for, and there are fears the death toll could still rise.
It is the second rail disaster in Spain this year, and the deadliest in the country since 2013. As names are released, grief and anger are spreading across the country.
One of the dead is Julieta Gallego, 24, a long jumper who competed for the Madrid club AD Sprint. The club wrote on Instagram that its entire membership was heartbroken. The Royal Spanish Athletics Federation announced her death and offered condolences to her family, friends and teammates. According to the outlet ABC, she regularly took part in Spanish club championships and had a best jump of 5.9 metres, or 19ft 3in. Raúl Chapado, the federation's president, told ABC that her death was a blow striking at the very heart of the athletics family, and that the sport mourned a life ahead of her that had been unjustly extinguished.
Another victim is Fátima Báñez, 59, a former employment minister. The Spanish Confederation of Business Organizations, which she chaired, confirmed her death and said her warmth, generosity and commitment leave an indelible mark on businesses and the whole team. Báñez served under Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy from 2011 to 2018 and was the first woman to hold the employment portfolio. In 2012 she introduced labour reforms that made it easier for companies to fire workers, which set off mass protests nationwide. Isabel Díaz Ayuso, president of the Madrid region, said she would be deeply missed and that Spain had lost a great political figure.
The Civil Guard confirmed that one of its officers, José Manuel Chacón, 31, was killed, and expressed deepest condolences to his family, friends and colleagues.
Antonio Montero Domínguez, a finance and tax lawyer, also died. The legal news website El Derecho remembered him as a meticulous professional and a tireless worker. Spain's tax authority confirmed his death; he had worked there as an inspector between 2012 and 2016.
The number of dead may still change as hospitals continue to treat the seriously injured and identification work goes on in Toledo. With the crash following another rail disaster earlier this year, the investigation into how two trains came to share one track will be closely watched.
Citações Notáveis
Spain loses a great political figure.— Isabel Díaz Ayuso, Madrid regional president, on Fátima Báñez
A blow that strikes at the very heart of the athletics family.— Raúl Chapado, president of the Royal Spanish Athletics Federation, on Julieta Gallego
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Politics & Governance