At least 10 people were killed and several others injured when two passenger trains collided in southern Spain after one derailed near the town of Adamuz in the province of Córdoba, emergency services said.
A police spokesman initially reported five dead but later raised the toll to 10. Authorities said more casualties were likely as rescue crews worked through mangled carriages and debris at the crash site.
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Spain’s rail infrastructure manager, ADIF, said a Málaga-to-Madrid service derailed and crossed onto the opposite track, where it struck an oncoming train. Both trains then derailed, ADIF said in a post on X.
“We have received calls from people reporting that there were injured and trapped,” a spokesperson for the Andalusian emergency services told AFP.
Spanish media reported that roughly 400 people were aboard the two trains combined. Television images showed paramedics, firefighters and police clustered around the wreckage, working carriage by carriage to reach passengers and stabilize the scene.
A journalist from public broadcaster RNE who was traveling on one of the trains said the impact felt like “an earthquake.” Passengers shattered carriage windows with emergency hammers to escape, the journalist said.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said he was closely monitoring the situation. Isabel Díaz Ayuso, president of the Madrid region, offered the capital’s hospitals to assist Andalusian services if needed.
Rail travel between Madrid and Andalusia was suspended following the collision, disrupting one of Spain’s busiest intercity corridors while authorities assessed damage and cleared the line.
Officials did not immediately provide a cause for the derailment and collision. Investigators and rail authorities were expected to examine the train data recorders, track conditions and signaling systems as emergency operations continued.
The crash occurred on a route linking Málaga on Spain’s southern coast with Madrid’s main stations, a corridor that carries heavy passenger traffic. The collision near Adamuz, north of Córdoba city, left carriages tilted and torn along a rural stretch of track, complicating access for first responders.
Emergency services urged the public to avoid the area to allow ambulances and specialized rescue vehicles to reach the site. Hospitals in Córdoba and surrounding provinces prepared to receive the injured as triage zones were set up along the line.
Authorities warned the death toll could change as crews completed searches of the carriages and more information emerged about the conditions of the injured. No identities were immediately released.
ADIF and regional officials said more updates would follow once recovery operations progressed and the line could be made safe. Until then, passengers were advised to check with rail operators for rebooking and alternative travel options between Madrid and Andalusia.
By Abdiwahab Ahmed
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
