Story Updated as of 7 a.m. EST, Jan. 20, 2026
At least 41 deaths were reported (as of 7 a.m. EST) in a high-speed train crash occurring late Sunday in Spain, called one of the worst railway accidents in Europe in the past 80 years.
High-speed train services across much of southern Spain remain suspended, and Spain will begin three days of mourning today while rescuers continue to scan the wreckage for missing persons or survivors.
Crash survivors recounted horrific scenes of bodies ejected from wrecked cars, while a union claimed it had warned officials that increased traffic was damaging railway infrastructure.
The Spanish Union of Railway Drivers stated Monday they don’t know what caused the train crash—Spain’s deadliest since 2013—in the southern city of Adamuz near Cordoba in the region of Andalusia. Survivors and rescuers shared distressing accounts, while the transport minister warned the death toll may still rise.
Andalusia’s regional president Juanma Moreno told RNE radio that bodies were found hundreds of feet from the crash site, with rescuers fearing more victims trapped under the train cars.
As night fell on Sunday around 7:45 p.m., two trains reportedly collided on Spain’s high-speed rail artery connecting the sunny south to Madrid. However, Álvaro Fernández Heredia, who heads the state-owned railway Renfe, cautioned against jumping to conclusions about one train smashing into the other.
According to reports, the rear cars of a northbound train heading to Madrid derailed and “veered onto the adjacent track for still unknown reasons.” As the accident happened on a straightaway, experts were baffled as to the cause. In addition, the trains had not been speeding before the crash.
High-speed train services across much of southern Spain were suspended on Monday, Spain’s railway infrastructure operator said on social media. Renfe said that rail service could be disrupted for days.
Spain ranks second globally after China in high-speed rail network size. Annually, 40 million passengers use Spain’s system, which achieves speeds comparable to Japan and France.
Click here for a statement from Renfe.
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