Tragedy in Spain: A Sassari native is among seven Italians involved. Two Italians are missing, one in the hospital.
At least 68 people died in the collision between two high-speed trains on the Madrid-Seville line. Updates from the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.A Sardinian, originally from Sassari and living abroad, is among the seven Italians involved in the deadly train accident in Toledo, Spain, where the collision between two high-speed trains caused at least 68 deaths, according to the latest official toll. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced this based on the Iryo train's passenger list and initial information about the Renfe train: four of the seven Italians are well, one is hospitalized but out of danger, and two are still missing. Among them is a woman from Pistoia.
The Farnesina is monitoring the situation in coordination with the Italian Embassy and Consulate General in Madrid. At the request of Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, a team from the Consulate General will continue to visit local hospitals and survivors' shelters to gather information and provide assistance to Italians.
The collision occurred at 8:54 a.m. on the high-speed line between Madrid and Seville, in the autonomous community of Castile-La Mancha, near Toledo. According to the reconstruction provided by Spanish Transport Minister Oscar Puente, a Renfe train struck an Iryo train that was stopped on the tracks.
The tragedy is believed to have been caused by a computer communication system failure and subsequent human error at the control center of ADIF, the railway infrastructure manager, at Madrid's Atocha station. Around 8:30 a.m., the minister explained, the LZB control system at Toledo's Urda station failed due to the failure of three network computers, leaving a 63-kilometer stretch of the high-speed line without safety equipment. The malfunction caused the automatic shutdown of the six trains traveling on the stretch at the time, including the two involved in the accident.
At 8:36 a.m., according to Minister Puente, the control center authorized the Renfe train to resume its journey, despite the Iryo train being stopped ahead, at the entrance to Urda station, and the traffic light being red. Over the next 18 minutes, the Renfe train traveled 25 kilometers, reaching speeds of 200 kilometers per hour, before crashing into the other train. "There was time to correct the error" at the Atocha control center, the minister stated. But this did not happen.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced three days of national mourning: "We will investigate thoroughly, and if there has been negligence, it will be known."
(Unioneonline/D)