CORDOBA, Spain — At least 39 people were killed when a high-speed Iryo passenger train derailed and collided with an oncoming Renfe Alvia service near the town of Adamuz in southern Spain, authorities said. Investigators are examining how the rear cars left the rails and ended up fouling the opposite track on a recently renovated section of line, as emergency crews continued to clear wreckage and treat the injured, Jan. 19, 2026.
The crash happened Sunday evening when an Iryo service traveling from Malaga to Madrid derailed near Adamuz, in Cordoba province, and was struck moments later by a Renfe-operated Alvia train heading from Madrid to Huelva, according to Reuters. Emergency officials reported 122 people were injured; 48 remained hospitalized, including 12 in intensive care.
One survivor, identified as Ana, told Reuters that “the train tipped to one side… then everything went dark, and all I heard was screams.” She said other passengers pulled her through a window as firefighters worked to free trapped riders.
Rescuers faced a difficult approach to the scene. Iñigo Vila, a national emergency director with the Spanish Red Cross, said the remote location and limited access complicated ambulance traffic, according to Reuters. Spain’s Transport Minister Óscar Puente said the toll “is not yet definitive” as recovery and identification efforts continued.
Officials have not publicly identified a cause. Renfe President Álvaro Fernández Heredia said the derailment occurred in “strange conditions” and that “human error is practically ruled out,” Reuters reported. Spain’s Transport Ministry said an independent investigative commission would be formed “as required by law,” according to EL PAÍS, and Puente described the incident as “very strange” given the track’s condition.
Rail traffic between Madrid and Andalusia was heavily disrupted, with widespread cancellations and passengers rerouted or stranded at major stations, including Madrid’s Atocha, as reported by The Associated Press. The derailment and collision made the Spain train crash the country’s deadliest rail disaster in more than a decade, prompting condolences from national and regional leaders, and plans for official visits to the area, according to The Guardian.
Spain train crash: what it means for rail safety and what investigators will examine
Investigators are expected to focus on several lines of inquiry: wheel or bogie failure, track conditions and points, signaling data, and the seconds between the derailment and impact. Early timelines suggest the derailment preceded the collision by only a short window, limiting any chance of emergency braking, Reuters reported.
Spain’s modern rail network has faced scrutiny before. In July 2013, an Alvia train derailed near Santiago de Compostela, killing 79 people; a Spanish court later convicted the driver and a former rail safety official, according to a 2024 Reuters report. Spain also remembers the 2006 Valencia metro derailment, which killed at least 41 people, as detailed in an NPR report. A broader Reuters timeline of rail tragedies has previously highlighted how speed, infrastructure and safety systems can combine into catastrophic failures.
For now, authorities are urging families to use official channels for information and to avoid unverified claims circulating online. As the investigation continues, the Spain train crash is likely to renew calls for transparency around safety systems, maintenance records and incident reporting across the high-speed network.
