A man has recounted the dreadful moment when a train derailed in southern Spain on Sunday (January 18), resulting in at least 39 fatalities.
The tragic event took place in Adamuz, near Córdoba, where one train appeared to veer off the track and collide with an oncoming service.
The train, traveling from Málaga to Madrid, reportedly derailed first, crashing into another train en route from Madrid to Huelva, which subsequently derailed and tumbled down an embankment.
Around 400 individuals, including both passengers and staff, were on the trains. Spanish Transport Minister Óscar Puente mentioned that the final death toll ‘is not yet final’.
Among the deceased, a train driver is believed to be included, as reported by sources from the Ministry of Transport.
At least 73 passengers were hospitalized, with 24 sustaining severe injuries, including four children. More than a dozen are in critical condition.
This incident is the deadliest train accident in Spain in over ten years, prompting an investigation into its cause.
According to the BBC, Puente stated that the investigation will not determine a cause for at least a month.
Salvador Jimenez, a journalist with Spanish network RTVE, who was in the front of one of the trains, described the terrifying moment of the crash, likening the impact to an ‘earthquake.’
As per the publication, he said: “I was in the first carriage. There was a moment when it felt like an earthquake, and the train had indeed derailed.
“They immediately called for medical personnel who could help, they used hammers to break the windows, and in the end, they evacuated us.”
Other passengers shared their experiences, including a traveler known only as José, who was heading to Madrid, and told public broadcaster Canal Sur: “There were people and screaming, calling for doctors.”
Another distressed passenger recounted the moments leading up to the crash on X, stating: “Ten minutes after departing [from Córdoba] the train started to shake a lot, and it derailed from coach six behind us. The lights went out.”
Elsewhere, Puente described the derailment as ‘extremely strange’, noting that it occurred on a straight section of track that had been repaired as recently as May 2025.
Video shows the aftermath of a fatal rail accident in southern Spain, where a high-speed train derailed and collided with an oncoming train, forcing the second train off the tracks and down an embankment.
Spanish state media says at least 39 people were killed in the crash. pic.twitter.com/G01izHI6iH
— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) January 19, 2026
He also noted that the majority of casualties occurred in the first two carriages of the second train.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez expressed the tragedy as a ‘night of deep pain’. Meanwhile, King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia extended ‘heartfelt condolences to the relatives and loved ones of the dead, as well as our love and wishes for a swift recovery to the injured’.
This crash marks Spain’s most significant since 2013, when the country experienced its worst high-speed train derailment in Galicia, north-west Spain, where 80 people lost their lives, and 140 more were injured.