Spain Rail Crash: Families Search for Missing After 69 Killed

Two high-speed trains collided in central Spain on Wednesday, killing at least 69 people and injuring 180 others. The crash occurred in the Castilla-La Mancha region, where a RENFE train struck an Iryo train that had stopped on the tracks. More than 24 hours after the impact, families remained in Toledo searching for missing relatives.

César Vicente, an actor from Seville, traveled 495 kilometers to Toledo to find his father. He spent the night at a religious center that served as a base for those affected. Vicente said he did not know where his father was, who had been sitting in seat 13A on the RENFE train. He described the situation as unbearable and compared it to hell.

Relatives used social media to post details about missing passengers. Alejandra Marroquín posted on Instagram on Wednesday that her sister Adriana, who was wearing dark blue clothes, was in car 8 of the RENFE train. As of Thursday morning, Marroquín said they had not been able to contact her. Search teams with sniffer dogs continued to look for victims.

This event marks the second deadly high-speed rail disaster in Spain this year. In January, 46 people died when a train derailed and hit another train moving in the opposite direction in southern Spain. Before 2026, the network had not seen a fatal crash since it began operating more than 30 years ago. The system is the second-largest in the world, behind only China’s.

King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia visited Toledo University Hospital on Thursday. They spent more than an hour with injured passengers. The king told reporters that the country must keep moving forward with dignity and resolve. He acknowledged the pain of the loss but urged unity in the memory of the victims.

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez told reporters on Thursday morning that the government was working to support families and improve security. He said the goal was to shed light on the tragedy and ensure it does not happen again. The government emphasized its commitment to strengthening the rail system’s safety protocols.

The crash disrupted life in Urda, a town of 2,500 people south of Madrid. Residents rushed to help, carrying unharmed passengers from the tracks to a nearby sports pavilion. David Gómez, a construction worker, said he and his colleagues ran to the scene after hearing the crash. They cut through fences to access the area and treated injured people with first-aid kits until emergency services arrived.

Authorities issued a call for blood donations after 110 of the injured were taken to hospitals. More than 2,000 people volunteered in Castilla-La Mancha alone. Emiliano García-Page, the region’s president, thanked the 1,300 emergency service personnel who were mobilized. He noted that the region set an all-time record for blood donations in response to the disaster.

The Iryo train was operated by a private company, while the RENFE train is part of the state-owned network. The collision happened when the RENFE train hit the stopped Iryo train. Dozens of passengers were trapped in the wreckage, requiring extensive rescue efforts. The investigation into the cause of the crash is ongoing.