By Ahmed Abdelsalam
At least 69 people were killed when a high-speed Renfe train slammed into a stationary Iryo train on the Madrid-Seville line near Urda, about 140 kilometres south of Madrid, on Wednesday. The collision is the second deadly crash on the same route in nine months, following an accident in Adamuz that left 46 dead.
Survivors describe chaos and horror
Passengers recounted being thrown violently inside carriages. Iñaki García, 60, said he saw injured people walking among the dead in adjacent cars. A young survivor told the BBC the trauma may never fade. Antonio García, a pharmacist from Urda who rushed to the scene with medical supplies, recalled a passenger's final words to his family: "God is good." Local resident Rosa María Domínguez described the aftermath as "a horror film" but noted the community quickly organised aid, converting a sports hall into a makeshift hospital.
Political fallout intensifies
Spain has declared three days of mourning. Leaked audio recordings from the control room appear to confirm a computer failure followed by human error, as Transport Minister Óscar Puente initially indicated. The disaster has become a flashpoint in the election campaign, with Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez's Socialist PSOE trailing the conservative People's Party in polls. Far-right Vox supporters clashed with police outside the transport ministry in Madrid. Both Sánchez and opposition leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo visited Urda, though main parties have otherwise suspended campaigning.
Rail safety under scrutiny
The train drivers' union Semaf condemned the audio leak as irresponsible and proceeded with a planned strike to demand that safety never be subordinated to scheduling pressures. Driver Vicente Almenar said the entire procedural chain failed. Feijóo insisted the Spanish public needs answers after more than 100 deaths on the same high-speed line in less than a year.
