At least 21 people were killed and dozens injured after a high-speed train derailed and collided with another train in southern Spain, prompting a major rescue operation and urgent investigation.
WEBDESK – Act Global Media – January 19, 2026
At least 21 people were killed and dozens more injured after a high-speed train derailed and slammed into an oncoming train Sunday evening in southern Spain, authorities said, in one of the country’s deadliest rail disasters in years.
The collision occurred around 7:45 p.m. near the village of Adamuz, outside Córdoba, when the rear portion of a train traveling from Malaga to Madrid jumped the tracks and crossed into the opposite line, crashing head-on into a train heading from Madrid to Huelva, according to rail operator Adif.
Spain’s Transport Minister Óscar Puente confirmed the death toll had risen to 21 after midnight, adding that rescue teams had evacuated all survivors but warned the number of victims could still increase as identification continues.
Andalusia regional President Juanma Moreno said at least 75 passengers were hospitalized, including 15 in serious condition. Most of the injured were taken to hospitals in Córdoba.
“It will be a very difficult night,” Andalusia’s regional health chief Antonio Sanz said, as emergency crews worked through the darkness to recover bodies from the wreckage.
Puente described the incident as “truly strange,” noting that the crash happened on a flat stretch of track renovated just months ago. He added that the train that derailed, operated by private company Iryo, was less than four years old. The second train, operated by state-owned Renfe, sustained the most severe damage at its front.
According to Puente, the derailed train’s rear section struck the head of the oncoming train, knocking its first two carriages off the tracks and down a 13-foot slope. He said an investigation into the cause could take up to a month.
Passengers described scenes of terror inside the trains. Salvador Jiménez, a journalist with Spanish broadcaster RTVE who was on board one of the trains, said the impact “felt like an earthquake.” He told the network that passengers used emergency hammers to smash windows and escape, with some walking away despite the chaos.
Videos shared on social media showed mangled train cars, one badly crushed and another tilted at a steep angle, as first responders helped passengers climb out through broken windows. Firefighter chief Francisco Carmona of Córdoba said at least four wagons were derailed, with one train “badly mangled.”
Rescue efforts were complicated by the remote location of the crash site. Civil Protection chief María Belén Moya Rojas said local residents brought blankets and water to assist survivors. Spain’s military emergency units and the Red Cross joined firefighters, police, and medical teams in the operation.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez expressed condolences, calling it “a night of deep sadness for our country.” King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia also offered their sympathies, while European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she was following the “terrible news” closely.
Spain has Europe’s largest high-speed rail network, spanning more than 1,900 miles, and the system is widely regarded as safe and efficient. Renfe said more than 25 million passengers used its high-speed services in 2024.
Adif announced that rail services between Madrid and cities in Andalusia would remain suspended on Monday.
Spain’s deadliest train disaster this century occurred in 2013, when 80 people were killed after a train derailed in the northwest of the country.
