# Spain's train crashes shatter public trust

> Two deadly crashes in nine months have damaged confidence in Spain's rail system as the government races to rebuild trust before an election.
- Title: Spain's train crashes shatter public trust · the Guardian
- Summary: Two deadly crashes in nine months have damaged confidence in Spain's rail system as the government races to rebuild trust before an election. Sixty-nine…
- Keywords: spain, train crash, renfe, iryo, urda, pedro sánchez, general election, rail safety, óscar puente, public trust, the Guardian
- Source: the Guardian — https://theguardian.com/world/2026/nov/04/spains-deadly-train-crashes-have-damaged-public-trust-in-the-system
- Published: 2026-11-04T15:40:37+00:00
- Read time: 2 min
- Topics: spain, train crash, renfe, iryo, urda, pedro sánchez, general election, rail safety, óscar puente, public trust, news, world
## High-speed train crashes into stationary train
At eight fifty-three am last Wednesday, a Renfe high-speed train smashed into a stationary Iryo train near Urda in Castilla-La Mancha. Sixty-nine people died and more than one hundred were injured.
## Second deadly crash in nine months
On January eighteenth, an Iryo train derailed on the same Madrid to Seville line near Adamuz before being struck by a Renfe train. Forty-six people died, and public trust in Spain's trains was badly shaken.
## Survivor describes horrific scene
Josimar Medina, a Peruvian passenger, helped free an American called Austin from the wreckage. Medina said he saw people missing limbs and one person with nothing left below the chest.

> I saw people missing limbs, and I saw one person who had nothing left below the chest.
## Prime minister admits trust is broken
Pedro Sánchez said public trust in the high-speed system has been broken. His socialist-led coalition government now faces the immense task of rebuilding confidence.

> public trust in the high-speed system has been broken
## Transport minister resigns
Óscar Puente announced his resignation on Tuesday evening, acknowledging that neither the country nor he could bear one hundred deaths in less than a year.

> neither the country, nor I, can bear 100 deaths in less than a year
## Opposition attacks government record
Alberto Núñez Feijóo, leader of the conservative People's Party, accused the Sánchez administration of failing to keep Spaniards safe. He said the government is not good at being in charge.

> It's not just obvious that they're not good at being in charge.
## Far-right party demands investigation
Vox accused the government of killing train crash victims through incompetence, corruption, and cronyism. The party urged the supreme court to investigate Puente on suspicion of manslaughter.
## Election looms amid political turmoil
A snap general election is less than a month away. Sánchez already faced a tough road to re-election due to corruption scandals and criticism over the Ceuta crossing.
## Survivor's family reunites rescuer
Austin Hartman, a Cal Poly State University student, was treated for multiple fractures. His family found Josimar Medina through a photograph and arranged a video call to thank him.
## Recovery begins amid political crisis
As Spain prepares for its fifth general election in ten years, survivors face long recovery. Austin's stepmother said beautiful things are born of tragedy, usually in relationships formed from it.

> beautiful things are born of tragedy and it's usually in the relationships that are formed out of it
## Key takeaway

Sixty-nine people died when a Renfe train hit a stationary Iryo train near Urda, the second major crash in nine months, breaking public trust in Spain's rail network ahead of a snap election.