OMM Newsroom
Spanish authorities have identified 66 of the 69 people killed in last week’s high-speed train crash near Urda in central Spain, the regional high court said on Monday, according to Anadolu Agency.
Families have been notified in 60 cases, involving 36 men and 24 women, the centre coordinating the identification effort said in an update late on Sunday.
Of the 66 identified victims, 54 were Spanish and four were US citizens. The other eight were citizens of Argentina, Canada, Czechia, France, Japan, Mexico, Portugal and Tunisia, with one victim from each country.
Three missing-person reports remain open: two involving Australians and one involving a Japanese national.
The victims included Fatima Banez, who served as Spain’s labour minister under former Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, and award-winning Spanish composer Marisa Manchado, who was travelling to Seville for a university event.
Antonio Acedo, the 36-year-old driver of the “Renfe” train, and his assistant, Daniel Cabanas, were also killed. Another victim was 24-year-old long jumper Julieta Gallego, broadcaster “Cadena SER” reported.
More than 60 specialists have been working in Toledo since Wednesday to conduct autopsies and identify the dead using fingerprints and DNA.
Investigation examines collision and train protection system
The crash happened on Wednesday when a high-speed train operated by “Renfe” struck the rear of a stationary “Iryo” train near Urda in Toledo province. Transport Minister Oscar Puente said a failure in the automatic train protection system had brought the trains to a halt before a controller authorised the “Renfe” train to resume normal speed.
In January, another accident on the same high-speed route between Madrid and Seville killed 46 people.
Speaking at the World in Progress forum on Monday, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said independent investigators and the courts would have the resources needed to establish what happened.
“Our main obligation as the government of Spain is to restore the public’s shattered confidence in high-speed rail as soon as possible, whatever it takes,” he said.
