Four carriages derailed after a Renfe AVE train struck the rear of a stationary Iryo train near kilometre 118 of the Madrid-Seville high-speed line, close to Los Yébenes in Toledo, on 28 October 2026. Two Iryo carriages were reported to have derailed. The reported toll is 68 dead and nearly 200 injured; the regional government said 58 people needed hospital treatment. It was described as Spain’s second major deadly rail collision in nine months.
About 544 passengers were travelling on the two Madrid-to-Seville services, operated by state-owned Renfe and private operator Iryo. CNN reported 393 passengers on the AVE and 151 on Iryo, while other reporting gave figures of 397 and 147 respectively. At least 24 victims were reported to have been on the AVE train and 44 on the stationary Iryo. Telecinco reporter Raúl Triguero, who was travelling towards Seville, was among those whose whereabouts remained unknown. He had been due to interview Amador Mohedano, Rosa Benito’s former partner, for the programme ¡De Viernes!.
Lecturas reported that people close to Triguero had been unable to contact him since before 10am and were deeply worried. He was not listed among the dead, but his location and whether he had survived the collision had not been confirmed.
Former employment minister Fátima Báñez was also on a train bound for Seville, where she had an event scheduled with CEOE on Wednesday. Andalusian president Juanma Moreno said he had no news of her and described the distress of waiting for information about loved ones.
Several media outlets have reported that Báñez was among the 68 people killed. The source material says no official statement had confirmed her death. Her family and friends had been unable to reach her.
Architect Joaquín Torres, who said he was in carriage five, described carriage six as destroyed and said he had survived by chance. Actor Manuel Bandera said he had been travelling at the front of the convoy but was in a rear carriage on this journey.
The cause remains under investigation. Transport Minister Óscar Puente said a security or control system covering about 60 kilometres stopped functioning at around 8:30am because of a computer malfunction. The reported failure brought trains on the section to a stop, after which central command instructed the Renfe service to resume its journey. The Irish Times reported that the train was allowed to continue without speed restrictions and hit the stationary Iryo train at approximately 8:53am. Renfe said its service had been instructed to continue, but the reason for the collision was not known. The source report also cited initial hypotheses involving human error and a technical issue with LMZ, a system it described as measuring train speeds. Pedro Sánchez said the government intended to investigate the crash and improve Spain’s rail system.
ADIF, Spain’s rail infrastructure manager, confirmed that the collision involved two high-speed trains in Toledo province. Renfe suspended services on the Madrid-Andalusia corridor, while Iryo services departing Madrid-Puerta de Atocha on the Southern Corridor were also cancelled. The crash renewed scrutiny of high-speed rail safety and operational procedures.
