THE mystery behind Spain’s horrific train collision is growing, as human error is ruled out as the cause of the country’s worst rail disaster in more than a decade.
The tail end of a high-speed train travelling from Málaga to Madrid derailed Sunday evening and .
At least 39 people died and more than 120 injured in the deadliest train accident in Spain in over a decadeCredit: AFP
Emergency workers are seen at the site where a high-speed Iryo train derailedCredit: AFP
The tragedy happened on a flat stretch of track that had been renovated in MayCredit: Reuters
A survivor exits one of the derailed trains through a windowCredit: Reuters
39 people are dead, with more bodies expected to be found as heavy machinery works its way through the “mass of twisted iron”.
A sourced briefed on the initial probe into the cause of the deadly crash revealed a faulty joint had been identified.
Technicians found some wear on the joint between sections of the rail – known as a fishplate – which had been there for some time.
lvaro Fernndez, Renfe president – one of the train companies involved – told Spanish public radio RNE that both trains were well under the speed limit of 250 kph (155 mph).
The first train to derail – an Iryo train – was travelling at about 130mph, while the second train – operated by Renfe- was travelling at roughly 127mph.
The president of state-funded firm Renfe said human error was ruled out.
The 27-year-old driver of the Renfe train – which was carrying nearly 200 passengers – was killed in the horror smash, El País newspaper reported.
It took the brunt of the impact and it’s understood most of the fatalities were of people in the front carriages of the Renfe locomotive.
The front two carriages plummeted down a 13-foot slope after impact.
Fernández said the incident instead must be related to the moving equipment of Iryo or the infrastructure.
Iryo issued a statement on Monday saying that its train was manufactured in 2022 and passed its latest safety check on Jan. 15
Authorities are probing the exact circumstances of the crash, but Spanish Transport Minister Oscar Puente described the ordeal as “extremely strange”.
He said the tragedy happened on a flat stretch of track that had been renovated in May.
He also said the train that jumped the track was less than four years old.
Puente added that all the railway experts he had consulted were “extremely baffled by the accident”.
Most passengers were Spaniards travelling to and from Madrid after the weekend – it is unclear how many tourists were on board during a low-season period in Spain.
What we know so far…
- At least and 122 injured
- 43 people remain in hospital, of which 12 are in critical condition (including four children)
- All survivors have been rescued
- on social media
Emergency workers have worked through the evening to rescue peopleCredit: AFP
, Andalusia regional president Juanma Moreno said.
“Here at ground zero, when you look at this mass of twisted iron, you see the violence of the impact,” Moreno said.
“When you look at the mass of metal that is there. The firefighters have done a great job, but unfortunately when they get the heavy machinery to lift the carriages it is probable we will find more victims.”
Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez visited the site today, offering his “warmest embrace” to the victims and their families.
He vowed to “get to the truth”.
“We will find these answers,” he said.
Hundreds sustained injuries following the horror collisionCredit: Reuters
Emergency services desperately searched in the dark for more trapped victimsCredit: Reuters
He announced three days of mourning beginning at midnight.
, as desperate families search for their loved ones.
Paqui, an Adamuz resident who with her husband rushed to help rescue survivors, described seeing body parts along the tracks between the two crash sites.
“(My husband) found a dead child inside, another child calling for his mother,” she described.
“You’re never ready to see something like this.”
Police said they had opened an office in Cordoba for relatives to provide DNA samples to help identify the dead.
Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez (second from right) has vowed to find the truthCredit: EPA 
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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