Accident on high-speed rail leaves 39 people dead in Andalusia

A high-speed train accident in Adamuz, near Córdoba, in the south of Spain, has left 39 people dead, according to sources from the rescue team.

Dozens of others have been left injured, some of them in severe condition.

Spain's transport minister Óscar Puente said that the number of fatal victims is "not definitive."

Spanish PM Pedro Sánchez visited the site on Monday morning, after canceling his agenda, and announced three days of official mourning.

"Spaniards are wondering what happened, how it has happened, and how this tragedy took place," Sánchez said.

"Time and the work of experts will give us the answers," he added.

Experts have already identified several victims, and law enforcement agents keep the area surrounded to avoid any trespassers.

At the moment, the causes of the accident are unknown, and Puente says it has been "very strange" because the fatal events happened in a straight-line area, the tracks had been revamped in May, and the train was "relatively new."

According to the 112 emergency hotline in Andalusia, 122 patients have been treated, including five minors, 43 of whom are still hospitalized. There are 12 adults injured and one minor in the intensive care unit.

Meanwhile, 79 of them have already been discharged.

The accident happened at 19:39 on Sunday, when the Iryo train traveling from Málaga to Madrid derailed with 317 passengers. It then blocked the other track, where it crashed with an Alvia train, transporting 200 people.

The Alvia also derailed after the crash, and two carriages fell 4 meters.

Among the victims is the driver of the Alvia train.

Rejected human error

Renfe president Álvaro Fernández Heredia said they "practically reject" the idea that the accident was caused by "human error."

"It will be because of the Iryo train or because of the infrastructure, it is time to wait, not speculate, and see what the investigation committee says," he said in an interview with Spain's public radio broadcaster RNE.

"We will not have a clear conclusion soon; it is very complicated," he added.

Meanwhile, the Catalan government and the city council organized a minute of silence at midday at Sant Jaume Square in Barcelona on Monday.