Shock, anger and mourning in Spain after 2nd major train crash this year

Amna Nawaz:

In the day's other headlines: There is shock, anger and mourning in Spain after the second fatal train crash this year in what's now the deadliest collision there in more than a decade. At least 68 people have died.

William Brangham has our report.

William Brangham:

A normal morning train journey in Central Spain today ended in a field of twisted steel.

Near the town of Urda, about 90 miles south of Madrid, a high-speed train bound for Seville slammed into another train that was stopped, knocking them both off the tracks and shearing at least one apart; 147 people were aboard the stopped train.

From inside, survivors could see out the windows at the destruction they'd narrowly missed. On the other train, nearly 400 passengers were thrown into chaos.

Rafael Barcelo, Train Passenger (through interpreter):

We were having breakfast, having a coffee, and we felt a huge impact. We were all thrown into the air. I am reasonably OK. My friend is quite worse.

William Brangham:

Many are now looking for their loved ones.

Woman (through interpreter):

My husband was in the train that left Madrid, and we just rushed here as soon as we heard about the accident. We came here and no one tells us anything. I don't know anything.

William Brangham:

Firefighters and a military unit climbed through the wreckage, digging by hand through shattered seats and crushed steel. Authorities said this is Spain's deadliest rail accident in more than a decade, but it's not the first one this year.

In January, on the same high-speed line, a train operated by the same carrier derailed and struck another, killing 46, and ignited a debate over whether Spain is doing enough to keep its railways safe.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who faces national elections next month, went to the scene and promised action.

Pedro Sanchez, Spanish Prime Minister (through interpreter):

We are going to get to the bottom of this. If there were failures in the safety system, we will address them decisively.

William Brangham:

All high-speed service between Madrid and the southern province of Andalusia has been suspended. But in a country that built one of the world's larger high-speed networks, with the promise that its cities could be linked quickly and safely, today, that promise lies in pieces for the second time in a year.

For the "PBS News Hour," I'm William Brangham.