At least 68 people died and many were injured when a high-speed train hit a stopped train near Urda in central Spain, leading to a large recovery effort and an official investigation into the cause.
The crash happened at about 8:53 a.m. Wednesday on the Madrid–Seville line, when a Renfe train hit the back of an Iryo service that had stopped on the tracks. There were 544 passengers on the two trains. The impact derailed several carriages, and some fell down a slope.
By Thursday, 53 injured people remained in hospitals in Castilla-La Mancha, according to regional authorities. Regional authorities said 56 other injured people had been discharged. Transport Minister Óscar Puente said a failure in the LZB system used for safety communications had stopped trains in the area.
He described as inexplicable the later decision to let the Renfe train continue at normal speed despite a red signal. That account is preliminary. Authorities are investigating what happened.
The Civil Guard has questioned staff at the control center. Spain began three days of national mourning on Thursday. The disaster was the country’s second deadly high-speed crash this year.
It renewed scrutiny of rail safety.