Work continues on identifying victims, Spanish leader say, with fears that death toll could grow
Spanish prime minister Pedro Sánchez and Castilla–La Mancha president Emiliano García-Page have just briefed the media on the latest on the train crash on Wednesday.
69 people have been confirmed dead, but the toll may rise further, with at least 70 people reported missing. Some may be among those yet to be identified, with emergency services having so far confirmed the identities of only 13 people. A further 31 body bags containing partial remains also await identification, making the process “very complex.”
Sánchez added that there may be up to 27 nationalities among the affected, with authorities working in close coordination with relevant embassies and consulates.
Out of 110 people hospitalised after the incident, 71 have been discharged, and 39 remain in hospitals.
The prime minister also acknowledged that the confidence in the country’s high-speed train, once a source of national pride, is “broken” as he pledged to work on restoring it in the future.
“The government’s job is not just to make the diagnosis, but to offer solutions so that a tragedy of this magnitude never happens again. And that’s what we’re doing,” he said.
Key events
At least 51 foreign nationals affected by Spanish train crash
Sources at Spain’s foreign ministry have confirmed that at least 51 foreign nationals from 23 different countries were involved in the crash.
Of those, two are believed to have died, nine were injured, and 18 are largely unharmed; the status of 22 remains unclear.
These numbers are likely to change as the identification process continues.
Portuguese authorities have confirmed that one crew member killed in the accident was Portuguese, according to El País and EFE.
Work continues on identifying victims, Spanish leader say, with fears that death toll could grow
Spanish prime minister Pedro Sánchez and Castilla–La Mancha president Emiliano García-Page have just briefed the media on the latest on the train crash on Wednesday.
69 people have been confirmed dead, but the toll may rise further, with at least 70 people reported missing. Some may be among those yet to be identified, with emergency services having so far confirmed the identities of only 13 people. A further 31 body bags containing partial remains also await identification, making the process “very complex.”
Sánchez added that there may be up to 27 nationalities among the affected, with authorities working in close coordination with relevant embassies and consulates.
Out of 110 people hospitalised after the incident, 71 have been discharged, and 39 remain in hospitals.
The prime minister also acknowledged that the confidence in the country’s high-speed train, once a source of national pride, is “broken” as he pledged to work on restoring it in the future.
“The government’s job is not just to make the diagnosis, but to offer solutions so that a tragedy of this magnitude never happens again. And that’s what we’re doing,” he said.
Evacuations from Russian-occupied Ukrainian city of Oleshky begin
Meanwhile, we are getting a line from Russian-occupied Oleshky confirming that evacuations are now under way, as part of a US-brokered localised ceasefire to provide humanitarian aid to the city’s residents.
527 people are expected to return to Ukraine-controlled territories, Ukraine’s prime minister Sergii Koretskyi said, quoted by Interfax.
Speaking to parliament, he added that they would travel through Russia to Belarus, where they would then enter Ukraine through the Kyiv and Chernihiv regions.
Russian human rights commissioner Yana Lantratova claimed that some people wanted to be evacuated to Russia, too.
Morning opening: Spain mourns and investigates causes of train crash in Toledo
Jakub Krupa
Spain continues investigating Wednesday’s deadly train crash in Toledo province, which killed 69 people, and left many more injured.
An initial interim report by the independent body investigating the crash confirms the high-speed Ave train was travelling at between 160 and 200km/h when it collided with the stationary train ahead of it.
Despite a lot of attention on leaked recordings of conversations between the operations centre and drivers affected by a signalling failure in the Urda area, the full investigation is likely to take weeks if not months. The investigators were not able to speak to some of the key witnesses so far, the interim report said.
But, as our Spain correspondent Sam Jones notes in his analysis, the effect on Spain’s politics can be more imminent given next month’s parliamentary elections.
“The crash could sap Sánchez’s recently resurgent momentum and the issue of rail safety now threatens to overshadow his attempts to defend his record and remain in the Moncloa palace.”
Elsewhere, I will be keeping an eye on France and Italy, with more protests planned in both countries as populations continue to show their frustrations with the state of education, the cost of living and other issues.
French interior minister Laurent Nuñez warned of “a very high risk” of violent disorder this weekend, as he blamed “the radicalised far-left” and the Yellow Vest movement for urging more people to attend demonstrations with “quite radical” messages.
In Italy, “massive” students protests are expected in Rome, Milan, the student movement said.
I will bring you all the latest.
And later the attention will turn to Canada, as it continues discussing its new relationship with the EU at a summit in Montreal – whether through an “associate membership” or some other form of partnership. We will hear from Mark Carney and Ursula von der Leyen.
It’s Friday, 30 October 2026, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.
Good morning.
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