At least 68 killed in collision between high-speed trains in Spain

At least 68 people were killed and 58 required hospital treatment after two high-speed trains collided Wednesday morning in Spain’s Toledo province, according to the Castilla-La Mancha regional government. Rescue crews continued searching the wreckage for survivors and victims.

The trains, carrying a reported 544 passengers, were traveling in the same direction between Madrid and Seville when a state-owned Renfe train struck the rear of a stationary train operated by private company Iryo. The impact derailed two Iryo carriages and severely damaged several cars near the towns of Urda and Los Yébenes.

Transport Minister Óscar Puente said a computer malfunction at about 8:30 a.m. disabled the railway security system along roughly 63 kilometers of track, bringing several trains to a halt. The Madrid control center later instructed the Renfe train to resume traveling without speed restrictions despite an active stop signal, Puente said. It hit the Iryo train at about 8:53 a.m.

Puente called the instruction “inexplicable” but said he was not assigning responsibility while investigators establish the circumstances, including the Renfe train’s speed. He said the train drivers were not at fault. Renfe confirmed that its train had been instructed to continue but said the reason for the collision was not yet known.

Rail service between Madrid, Ciudad Real and Andalusia was suspended. The crash followed a January collision near Adamuz, Andalusia, that killed 46 people and remains under investigation.