Sánchez says trust in Spain's high-speed rail is broken after Urda crash

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said confidence in Spain's high-speed rail system had been broken after the Urda crash, promising that the government would seek solutions as well as establish what caused the disaster. The collision in Toledo province on Wednesday has killed 69 people, according to the figures available at the time of his statement on Friday.

Speaking after a meeting of the Integrated Operational Coordination Centre in Toledo alongside Castilla-La Mancha president Emiliano García-Page, Sánchez said two accidents of this scale within a year were unacceptable. He referred to the Adamuz crash about nine months earlier, in which 46 people died. Together, the two disasters had claimed almost 120 lives.

Emergency coordination changes

Sánchez and García-Page said the response was moving to level 1, returning direction and coordination of the operation to the regional government. Sánchez thanked regional officials, local authorities and emergency personnel for their work at the scene and with families.

The prime minister said victims came from as many as 27 nationalities and that the government was coordinating with the relevant consulates. He also acknowledged the distress of relatives awaiting information. Authorities had received 70 missing-person complaints; two of those people had been found alive.

Investigation and political pressure

Sánchez said the Transport Ministry was leading the inquiry into the causes, while the investigation was also proceeding through the courts. King Felipe VI had called the previous day for measures to prevent a tragedy of this scale from recurring.

Opposition parties have called for Transport Minister Óscar Puente to leave office. Sources at La Moncloa said Sánchez retained confidence in him and ruled out his dismissal or resignation.

Source: La Vanguardia, El Confidencial, 20minutos and elDiario.es.