’35′ Dead in Spain Train Derailment: Explosions Reported by Witnesses

Multiple sources are reporting that as many as 35 people have been killed after a horrific 13-carriage train derailment in the Northern Spanish city of Santiago de Compostela that happened at around 9:00 p.m. local time. The train was en route from Madrid to the northern city of Ferrol when the derailment happened.

Here’s what you need to know…

1. Witnesses Heard An Explosion Before the Derailment

According to Reuters World, witnesses reported hearing an explosion. The reports of an explosion being heard prior to the derailment were also reported by local radio station Cadena Sar (translated via RTE.ie).

A spokesperson for the company told RT.com said that it was too early to speculate was caused the crash.

Surviving passengers told CNN about the horrific scenes they witnessed:


2. Dozens Are Reported to Have Been Killed

Information is conflicting right now with some sources reporting as many as 38 people have been killed.

One passenger, Ricardo Montesco, told Cadena Ser radio station:

It was going so quickly … It seems that on a curve the train started to twist, and the wagons piled up one on top of the other.

Local president of regional government, Alberto Nunez Feijoo, told AFP:

The number of dead will not be lower than 35, there are bodies laying on the railway track. It’s a Dante-esque scene.


3. Another 50 People Have Been Injured

Spain Train Derail Compostela Explosion

Russia Today is reporting that another 50 some people have been rushed to area hospitals after the crash. The train was carrying 218 passengers and crew at the time of the derailment. Though AFP have tweeted:


4. It Was a High-Speed Train

The train was a high-speed model en route from Madrid to Ferrol on the north west coast of Spain. The crash was confirmed by railway company, Renfe, who operated the train. A spokesman for the company said:

It derailed near the station of Santiago de Compostela but we don’t yet know why.

It was confirmed as happening in the Northern Spanish city of Santiago de Compostela in the Galicia region. The train was around 60 miles away from it’s destination when the crash occurred.

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has said he will arrive in the region tomorrow.


5. Early Reports Say That the Train Derailed While Turning a Corner

According to Cadena SERA, various witnesses have said that the “train was going very fast and when it got to a curve it derailed..”