[quote]
A train has derailed in north-western Spain, killing at least 35 people and injuring many more, officials in Galicia region have said.
All 13 carriages of the train, which was travelling from Madrid to Ferrol, came off the tracks near the city of Santiago de Compostela.
Images from the scene showed bodies strewn near ruined carriages, and emergency crews searching the wreckage.
Analysts say it is the worst rail accident in Spain in four decades.
Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy convened an emergency ministerial meeting late on Wednesday and is due to visit the scene of the accident on Thursday.
Local authorities have issued an appeal for residents to donate blood to hospitals in the area.
Leader of the regional government Alberto Nunez Feijoo confirmed the death toll but told radio Cadena Ser that it was too early to say what caused the accident.
"There are bodies lying on the railway track. It's a Dante-esque scene," he said in comments translated by the AFP news agency.
The BBC's Tom Burridge in Madrid says Thursday is a local holiday in the region, and many people would have been preparing to celebrate.
Local journalist Francisco Camino said the region was in shock.
"This is a tiny place and nothing happens here, nothing important or tragic," he told the BBC.
"We were preparing for the celebrations and now this could turn out to be the worst train crash in many years."
Railway firm Renfe said the train was carrying at least 218 passengers, and came off the tracks on a bend about 3km (two miles) from Santiago de Compostela station.
It was on the express route between Madrid and the ship-building city of Ferrol on the Galician coast.
Images showed dozens of emergency workers crowded around ruined carriages.
Passengers were shown lying on the ground being treated, and there were several bodies near the tracks.
[url]http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-23442018[/url]
[/quote]
[del]Sadly knowing the direction that Spain is heading economically this smells awfully like bad track maintenance
Could be wrong though[/del]
Turns out I'm wrong heh
[QUOTE=leach139;41582394]Sadly knowing the direction that Spain is heading economically this smells awfully like bad track maintenance
Could be wrong though[/QUOTE]
Nope. ABC (Spanish news) says the train was going at more than double the speed allowed.
To add some more numbers, there are 45 deaths and more than 70 hurt people...
[img]http://www.cadenaser.com/recorte/20130724csrcsrnac_19/LCO668/Ies/Vagos-volcados-tren-siniestrado-cerca-Santiago-Compostela.jpg[/img]
[editline]24th July 2013[/editline]
Also, the people responsible for the trains stated that the curve where the accident happened was very pronounced. It's pretty much confirmed that it was an accident, not intended.
ABC is pretty much longing for a terrorist attack, or to blame the driver. They are pretty much Franco nostalgics.
Those trains are quite well informaticed, as in the on-board computer won't let them go over the max speed for that tract. That failing and the high-speed train not slowing down is, sadly, feasible.
Also, we got a fucking huge stealth train budget cut two months ago. And our rail system was already fucking retarded and with a profit-driven mentality.
I also have MANY friends who take that train weekly. And Compostela is (was) in the middle of festivities, so the train was chock-full. Fuck Madrid and Ferrol, most people were going from Ourense to Santiago.
Corpses being removed from the wreckage with their cellphones ringing. God fucking dammit that's what's going on. At least EVERYBODY is donating blood. But goddammit.
RT says at least 60 dead
[url]http://rt.com/news/spain-train-derailed-killed-546/[/url]
Officials deny any terrorism relation, it's just an accident
-snip, edited-
yeah, spain went through some tough times with terrorism in the past, my spanish teacher in highschool would tell about her experience in them all the time. glad to know this was only an incident though.
video of scene
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JeUuWOJNgqw[/media]
News update says 60 dead now
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