Two high-speed trains collide near Toledo, killing 68 people in Spain

The collision near Urda

At about 08:54 local time on 28 October 2026, according to Spanish emergency sources cited by RTP, a Renfe AVE high-speed train struck another train near Urda station in Toledo province, south of Madrid. Both services were bound for Seville. RTP put the AVE, numbered 2080, at 397 passengers and the Iryo train, numbered 6076, at 146, while SAPO gave 147 for the Iryo. RTP described the AVE as hitting the rear of the Iryo, which had stopped on the line. Reports also differ on timing, with SIC Notícias placing the crash shortly before 09:00 and SAPO shortly before 08:00. Two carriages derailed and fell down an embankment, and high-speed circulation between Madrid and Andalusia was suspended.

Casualties and missing people

Spanish authorities raised the provisional official death toll to 68 from an earlier count of 64, and regional officials warned the figure could still rise because some injured people are in serious condition. Emiliano García-Page, president of Castilla-La Mancha, said 53 people with moderate injuries (yellow code) and 15 with serious injuries (red code) had been treated, along with others with minor injuries. RTP reported 80 injured, 50 of them in serious condition, so the injury figures from the two sources do not match. Rescue dog teams were to be deployed to keep searching for survivors, and a judicial authorization was still awaited before crews could search further through the mass of metal. The Spanish Confederation of Business Organisations (CEOE) confirmed that Fátima Báñez, Spain's former Minister of Labour and Social Security from 2011 to 2018, is missing. According to the CEOE, she was travelling in carriage 1 of the Iryo train to Seville for a business event.

Moderate injuries (yellow code)53

Serious injuries (red code)15

Moderate injuries (yellow code)

53 people

Serious injuries (red code)

15 people

Data from the article text

Rescue operation

Ricardo Correia, a civil protection commander, told SIC Notícias that the rescue would be very complex because of the mass and speed of the trains and the difficulty of getting rescue vehicles to the site. He said the injured were scattered across the area and that rescuers were focusing their limited resources on people who could still be saved. Correia also said hospitals and emergency resources would have to be prepared for a large number of casualties.

“In a very early and rough analysis, it is not hard to see that the number of injured and dead will be very high.”

Government response and investigation

Pedro Sánchez visited the site in the early afternoon and told reporters that if negligence was involved it would be made known, and that a firm response would follow if safety failures were confirmed. He announced three days of national mourning on 29, 30 and 31 October. Sánchez said it was unacceptable that Spain should suffer two high-speed rail accidents in one year, referring to the Adamuz accident in Andalusia, which killed 46 people in January 2026. He added that the two accidents appear to have had different causes, while stressing that the competent bodies must establish what happened. The investigation is in the hands of the Independent Commission for Railway Accident Investigation and the judicial authorities, and involves the entities responsible for the Spanish railway system, including Adif and Renfe. Sánchez said the government would strengthen safety measures if needed to restore passenger confidence.

Portugal's response

Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro, speaking to reporters in Parliament during the debate on the 2027 State Budget, said he had passed Portugal's condolences and solidarity to Pedro Sánchez. He said he had no details yet on whether any Portuguese citizens were among the victims. Montenegro offered cooperation, including railway technicians to assess the situation and civil protection or psychological support teams. A statement from the office of minister Miguel Pinto Luz said his ministry had made the services of Infraestruturas de Portugal and CP available. President António José Seguro postponed a ceremony marking 170 years of railways in Portugal, originally planned for a Tuesday afternoon, to a date yet to be set, in solidarity with the victims.