80 derailed accidents in Spain

On the 24th, with a loud noise, a Spanish fast train with more than 200 passengers derailed at a distance of 3 km from the station, killing at least 80 people and injuring more than 170 people, becoming one of the worst train accidents in European history. . The road section where the accident occurred was a sharp turn with a speed limit of 80 kilometers, but the speed at that time was 190 kilometers.

Derailment 3 km from the station

The train derailed near Santiago de Compostela, the capital of the Galician Autonomous Region in Spain. According to a statement issued by the Spanish National Railway Company, the train departed from Madrid, the capital, to the town of Ferrol in the northwest. At 20:41 on the 24th, the local train derailed from San Diego de Compostela by 3 km.

A passenger said that when the train derailed, it was running at high speed and "it seemed to start rolling over at a corner."

"Carriage turned to the car"

The website of Spain’s “National News” announced the video footage taken by surveillance cameras installed along the railway. At that time, the train swiftly passed the dangerous corner, and the uncontrolled train derailed and ran into a wall near the railway. The scene shows that under inertia, the cars are distorted due to mutual pressure and the debris is like an extended accordion. One of the carriages was also broken due to the bending of the carriage, with one end facing the air.

After the accident, train driver Amo was caught in the deformed locomotive and was lucky to survive. Amo told the station by radio after the accident that the train had a speed of 190 kilometers per hour. The traffic signal on this corner clearly shows that the maximum speed cannot exceed 80 kilometers.

The passengers Monteiro recalled that the train rolled many times, some cars rolled over to other cars, and many passengers were trapped underneath. "We can only get out from underneath the car."

36 people still have serious injuries

After the train derailed, nearby residents first rushed to the scene, and some tried to break the glass windows of the carriage with stones, and some used clubs to open the deformed body and rescued the passengers inside. Subsequently, professional ambulance personnel arrived one after another.

Rescue workers found the remains of 73 victims at the scene, while others were sent to the hospital and died of their injuries. At present, 95 people are still receiving treatment in hospitals, including 36 children, including 4 children, who are in critical condition.

The accident train belongs to the Spanish National Railway Company. Although it is not the fastest "bullet train" in Spain, it belongs to the "relatively luxurious" version of the train and therefore uses the same rails as high-speed trains. Xinhua News Agency / Zhuangao â–  Rescue

Throughout the night, 15 hours to ensure no incidents occurred. When thousands of people rushed to the hospital to donate blood during the night. When the Spanish national mourned a three-day crash, local firefighters were preparing to strike. After learning of the disaster, the firefighters immediately suspended the strike. Fully participate in rescue. The rescue continued from 9 pm on the 24th to 12:45 on the 25th.

During the 15-hour rescue operation, rescue workers shuttled through trains and tried to rescue the passengers trapped in the carriage. Because several cars were thrown up and stacked together, rescue workers had to use a crane to lift the car up and implement the rescue. On the afternoon of the 25th, rescue workers confirmed that there were no remains of the victims in the carriage.

All the wounded were sent to the hospital, and the remains of the deceased were placed in a unified manner so that the families of the victims in the next few days could identify themselves.

After the tragedy, the Spanish media rolled out an appeal and called on the people to go to the hospital to donate blood for the wounded.

At the site of the incident in Santiago de Compostela, more than 1,000 people flocked to hospitals and clinics on the night of the accident to donate blood to the wounded.

Some hotels in the urban area promised that they would arrange free rooms for the families of the injured passengers.

On the 25th, the Spanish government announced that it will mourn the victims of the accident for three days in the country, while the entire Galicia region decided to mourn for seven days.

A spokesperson for the Spanish National Railway Company stated that the line where the accident occurred was temporarily closed from the 25th. The company has announced new train lines on its website and reminds passengers to pay attention to safety.

After the accident, Spanish Prime Minister Rajiho immediately held an emergency government meeting. After completing the relevant deployment, he also rushed to the scene of the accident and arrived on the morning of the 25th.