Karl Smallman
WARNING: GRAPHIC VIDEO – SCROLL DOWN THE PAGE TO VIEW IT
THE moment an Alvia train derailed near Santiago de Compostela in north-western Spain, has been graphically captured by a trackside security camera.
The train entered a sharp curve at high speed before coming off the track and smashing into a concrete wall.
At least 78 people have been confirmed dead. Between 10 and 20 are seriously injured and another 111 were injured but are now out of danger.
A British national was among those injured, the Foreign Office has confirmed. Speaking about the tragic train accident the Foreign Secretary, William Hague said: “I was very saddened to hear of the terrible train accident near Santiago de Compostela in Spain last night. My thoughts are with all those affected and their friends and family.”
The crash happened at 8.41pm local time as the train neared the city of Santiago de Compostela, a popular place of pilgrimage in the northwestern region of Galicia.
Train operator Renfe said the train was travelling on the express route from Madrid to the port city of Ferrol on the Galician coast.
According to El Pais newspaper, one of the two drivers reported the train was travelling at 190kph when it entered the bend. The speed limit on that section is 80kph.
Renfe and Adif, which is in charge of the tracks, have opened an investigation into the cause of the derailment but no statement will be made until the train’s black boxes are examined. However they added that the train “did not have any technical problems” and had been inspected just hours earlier.
This is the first fatal accident on a high-speed line in Spain and the most serious rail accident in the last 40 years.
Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has announced three days of mourning.
Looking the video of t he crash definitely the t rain took the curve at high speed
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Oh My God. The accident was ver dreadful. It was like an hollywood train accident.
If your relative or friend was killed, you can see the exact moment, over and over again.
“WARNING: GRAPHIC VIDEO – SCROLL DOWN THE PAGE TO VIEW IT”
Bad taste OP.
God be with all the Dead and injured
pl watch with keen observation,when the engine is at middle pillar the back side 2nd comparment from engine is bouncing(linking may have loosened)so that it may be derailed with engine and the engine, at that fastness that too in turning didn’t control and the calamity in front of us.it is just my observation.
I would let the families of the victims have thirty minutes with the driver, no questions asked.
Why have they not opened the black boxes of the train yet? I would have thought that that is the only way of making absolutely sure what has happened that caused this terrible accident with so much loss of life, just like when an aircraft goes down. The information it holds is vital.
It is so very unfair to blame the driver of the train without having all the facts and all the information.
Apparently the rail system on that particular part changed from an older system to a newer one in a very short space of track. Until the information from those black boxes are revealed, anything could have happened, be it mechanical, electrical or human error.
Let us just pray now for those that passed away and their families, and for the recovery of the injured.
I am not sure hiw this came into the public domain