Protests broke out in Spain following a train crash
In Madrid, more than 1,500 people took to the streets to protest following a major train crash that claimed dozens of lives. The demonstrators accused the authorities of negligence and demanded the resignation of Transportation Minister Óscar Puente and the government of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez. The protest near the Ministry of Transportation escalated into riots, and police used tear gas.
Protests in the Spanish capital erupted following a collision between two high-speed trains that occurred on October 28 near the town of Urda in the province of Toledo. The accident occurred on the railway line connecting Madrid with the southern region of Andalusia. As of October 29, the death toll from the disaster had risen to 69. CNN also reported dozens of fatalities. The tragedy has sparked outrage among people who are demanding explanations from the authorities and accountability for what happened.
About 1,500 demonstrators gathered outside the Spanish Ministry of Transportation building in Madrid. Representatives of far-right movements made up the majority of the protesters. They demanded not only the resignation of Minister Óscar Puente but also the resignation of Pedro Sánchez’s government. The protest did not remain peaceful. Riots later broke out near the ministry. According to the Spanish television channel TVE, police used tear gas in an attempt to disperse the crowd. The standoff continued until late in the evening.
One of the main reasons for the outrage was preliminary information about the circumstances of the accident. According to preliminary findings, one of the trains was given permission to continue moving even though the signal was red. If this information is confirmed, it could indicate a serious violation of traffic regulations. Transportation Minister Óscar Puente acknowledged that established protocols were violated following a failure in the information system. He cited human error as one of the possible causes of the disaster. However, final conclusions will be drawn following the investigation.
Now, Spanish authorities must determine exactly what caused the collision, why the train was allowed to proceed through a red signal, and whether the tragedy could have been prevented. The accident has already caused not only loss of life but also a political crisis: some citizens are demanding concrete answers and resignations from the government. This was reported by RMF24.
Near Urda, approximately 130 kilometers south of Madrid, 69 people were confirmed dead as a result of a collision between two high-speed trains. According to Interia, the website of the agency investigating the accident initially reported 74 fatalities, but this information was quickly corrected.
In Spain, Francisco Badea, director of FEM Expert Engineering and an expert in railway infrastructure and PRM certification, stated that the fatal high-speed train accident should not be attributed to the actions of a single person. In an interview with France 24, he called the assumption that the disaster was caused by a single human error absurd.
At least 69 people were killed in central Spain when two high-speed trains collided. The accident occurred near the town of Urda in the province of Toledo, approximately 150 kilometers south of Madrid. The government has declared three days of mourning, and rescue workers, police, military personnel, and investigators continue to work at the crash site.
