Spain mourns 69 people killed in high-speed train collision near Toledo
Spain began three days of mourning on Thursday after a Renfe train hit the back of a stationary Iryo train near Urda, killing at least 69 people. The transport minister blamed an "error" by the control centre in "inexplicable" circumstances.
The crash happened just before 9am on Wednesday near Urda, in the central region of Castilla-La Mancha. According to The Guardian, both trains were travelling from Madrid towards Andalucía. A train from state operator Renfe hit the rear of a stationary train run by private company Iryo. The impact knocked several carriages off the track. Transport Minister Oscar Puente said an automatic control system went down on 69 kilometres of track, and all trains there were stopped. He said the control centre then decided to resume traffic in circumstances he called "inexplicable". The Standard reported that the Renfe train travelled 25 kilometres before hitting the Iryo train. Puente said the control centre had enough time to verify the error but did not fix it. The regional government raised the death toll to 69 from 68 on Thursday, as sniffer dogs and thermal drones searched the site. Regional leader Emiliano García-Page said 50 people were still being treated in hospitals. Spain's foreign ministry said 42 foreign citizens from seven countries were involved. One of them was killed and at least seven were injured. The Guardia Civil said relatives had reported 64 people missing. It has set up offices in Madrid, Toledo, Córdoba and Seville to collect DNA samples. Among…
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