At least 39 people have been killed and more than 120 injured following a catastrophic high-speed train collision in southern Spain. The devastating crash occurred on Sunday night, January 18, 2026, near the town of Adamuz in Córdoba province, and officials fear the death toll may still rise.
Details of the Catastrophic Collision
The accident involved two trains on a straight stretch of renovated track. A northbound train operated by the private company Iryo, carrying 289 passengers and five crew members from Málaga to Madrid, derailed. The rear part of this train came off the rails, causing it to collide with an oncoming southbound train run by Spain's public rail operator, Renfe.
The Renfe train was travelling from Madrid to Huelva with approximately 200 passengers on board. The impact was so violent that the first two carriages of the southbound train were knocked off the tracks and sent careening down a four-metre slope. Spanish Transport Minister Óscar Puente stated that these two carriages bore the brunt of the damage.
"It was horrific. It was nighttime. There was no light," said Adamuz Mayor Rafael Moreno, who was among the first responders at the scene.
Survivors Describe Chaos and an 'Earthquake'
Passengers from both trains described a scene of sudden terror and chaos. One passenger on the Madrid-bound train said the collision felt "like an earthquake."
"Everything shook, then suddenly the train slammed on the brakes and the lights went out," the passenger told El País. "The Iryo staff asked if there were any doctors onboard to go to cars six, seven, and eight. I was in car four… I saw people who were really badly hurt."
Another passenger on the train headed to Huelva recounted the immediate aftermath. "Everything was very fast and chaotic, suitcases started falling, and when we were finally able to get out of the train cars, we saw a catastrophic situation."
Search, Recovery, and a Nation in Mourning
Emergency services worked through the night in a complex rescue operation. By Monday morning, officials confirmed that all survivors had been extracted from the wreckage. The grim task of recovering and identifying the deceased continued, with the driver of the Renfe train among the confirmed fatalities.
The force of the crash was such that victims were found far from the main impact site. Juanma Moreno, head of the Andalusian regional government, explained, "the impact was so incredibly violent that we have found bodies hundreds of metres away, which means that people were thrown through the windows."
In response to the tragedy, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez declared three days of national mourning, beginning at midnight on January 19. He expressed the nation's solidarity with the victims and their families, vowing to find answers.
Investigation Launched into 'Truly Strange' Crash
The cause of the derailment and subsequent collision remains unknown and is under urgent investigation. Minister Puente described the accident as "truly strange," given it happened on a straight section of modernized track.
Initial speculation about excessive speed has been ruled out by Renfe's president, Álvaro Fernández Heredia. He stated the speed limit on that stretch was 250 km/h, but the trains were travelling at 205 km/h and 110 km/h respectively at the time of the crash.
Authorities confirmed the Iryo train involved was less than four years old and had passed an inspection just four days prior to the accident. The investigation will now focus on determining what caused the initial derailment that led to the catastrophic multi-train collision.
