Spain reckons with 2nd deadly train crash of the year ahead of national election
URDA, Spain —
asserted
Spain → reckon → election
Spain's second high-speed rail disaster this year, a crash in which one train struck another from behind, killing 68 people, has raised fresh concerns about the safety of the country's rail network.
asserted
train → strike → network
Spain's network of high-speed rail has been considered one of the nation's crowning achievements.
asserted
network → consider → achievements
It ranks second to China in track mileage in the world.
asserted
It → rank → world
Until this year, it had not endured a deadly crash since coming into service over three decades ago.
asserted
it → endure → service
The collision Wednesday that turned a sleepy stretch of rail lined by olive groves into a scene of carnage came just four weeks before the country votes in a national election.
asserted
country → turn → election
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez visited the crash site in the central province of Toledo after regional authorities confirmed that more than 60 people had died and dozens more were being treated at hospitals.
asserted
dozens → visit → hospitals
Only in January, 46 people had died when one train jumped the track and slammed into the side of another going the opposite way in southern Spain.
asserted
train → die → Spain
Sánchez pledged an investigation into the latest collision and improvements to prevent another tragedy like the two that have shaken trust in a rail system that carried 45 million travelers last year, including millions of tourists.
asserted
that → pledge → tourists
"It is clear that we need to reinforce the safety of our train service to rebuild the trust in our high-speed rail," Sánchez said.
asserted
Sánchez → need → rail
"It is not acceptable for a country like Spain to endure two high-speed train accidents in the same year."
asserted
country → endure → year
Sánchez's government declared three days of mourning starting Thursday.
asserted
government → declare → mourning
Both deadly crashes this year involved a train operated by the state-owned RENFE company and one from the privately owned IRYO.
asserted
crashes → involve → IRYO
Spain only liberalized its high-speed rail service in 2021, with the Italian IRYO starting service the following year.
asserted
IRYO → liberalize → service
Political implications for Sánchez ahead of election
Sánchez has weathered many crises since taking power in 2018, staying in power and winning reelection after the COVID-19 pandemic and the global rise in inflation.
asserted
Sánchez → weather → inflation
But polls show he faces another uphill battle when voters cast ballots in Spain's first national election since 2023.
asserted
voters → show → 2023
The new rail disaster can't help the prospects of his Socialist party.
asserted
disaster → help → party
Sánchez and other progressive parties had hoped to leverage a wave of discontent over housing costs and high rents when he called for early elections earlier this month.
asserted
he → hop → elections
About an hour before news of Wednesday's crash spread, Sánchez had posted on X a message that "There are lots of reasons to be optimistic about this country."
asserted
Sánchez → spread → country
Now it appears he will have to handle concerns over the state of Spain's rail service along with attacks from right-wing parties over his liberal migration policies and accusations of corruption against his party and his wife, which both he and his wife deny.
asserted
he → appear → which
His transport minister, Óscar Puente, had to handle media questions over whether he would resign following a second major train wreck under his watch.
asserted
he → have → watch
His response was that he was fully focused on dealing with the collision, not his future.
asserted
he → focus → future
Sánchez's main rival, Popular Party leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo, demanded a full investigation of the crash.
asserted
rival → demand → crash
The conservative leader said that in respect for the victims his party canceled its campaign events for the day.
asserted
party → say → day
"This is the moment to respect the dead, the injured and their families," Núñez Feijóo said.
asserted
Feijóo → respect → dead
"That does not mean we will ignore the fact that Spaniards are asking tough questions that demand answers."
asserted
that → mean → answers
The far-right Vox leader, Santiago Abascal, who is likely hoping to enter a coalition government with the conservatives, did not show the same restraint.
asserted
who → hop → restraint
More rage over being left to fend for ourselves, the despair and the betrayal that Spaniards are enduring," Abascal said just hours after the crash.
asserted
Abascal → leave → crash
"I promise to work tirelessly until this government, which is a criminal organization, is sitting in a courtroom to answer for its crimes," he said.
asserted
he → promise → crimes
Puente said that the crash was caused by what he called the "inexplicable" order from a central command center for Spain's trains after a security system had failed.
asserted
system → say → trains
He said the train engineers were not to blame.
asserted
engineers → say → ?
Puente said that at 8:30 a.m. the security system on a stretch of 63 kilometers (39 miles) stopped working due to a computer malfunction, causing all trains on that stretch to stop.
asserted
trains → say → stretch
At that point the IRYO train was stopped near the town of Urda, while the RENFE train was 25 kilometers (15.5 miles) behind it.
asserted
train → stop → it
But a few minutes later the central command told the RENFE train to start running again without any speed restrictions, and it ended up colliding with the stationary IRYO train at 8:53 a.m.
Puente said that the train should never have been told to start moving again since there was still a "stop signal" active on that line.
asserted
train → tell → line
And if it had, at least it should have been told to go at reduced speed.
asserted
it → have → speed
Workers started to use cranes to move parts of the damaged trains late on Wednesday after a hectic day involving hundreds of emergency workers, firefighters, police and soldiers all pitching in to rescue survivors and recover bodies.
asserted
hundreds → start → bodies
The Aporia
