Two Australians Among 69 Dead in Spain Train Collision
Two Australians are among the 69 people who died in a high-speed train collision in Spain, according to The Guardian. A Spanish police and forensics identification body announced late on Monday, 2 November, that the three most recently confirmed victims were two Australians and a Japanese citizen. None of the three has been publicly named.
The crash happened outside the village of Urda, about 130 km south of Madrid. A train operated by Renfe ran into the back of an Iryo train that had stopped on the line.
Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said it is providing consular assistance, the help governments give their citizens abroad, to the families of the two Australians who died.
Of the 69 dead, 54 were Spanish nationals and 15 were foreigners. The foreign victims included four US citizens, two Japanese citizens, two Australians, and one each from Argentina, Canada, France, Mexico, Portugal, Tunisia and the Czech Republic.
Nippon.com reported that the families of all 69 people killed had been informed of the accident.
Train services between Madrid, Ciudad Real and Andalucía have been suspended, according to Australia's Smartraveller travel advice.
The collision is not the first serious high-speed rail accident in Spain this year. In January, a train in southern Spain left the track and hit the side of another travelling in the opposite direction, killing 46 people.
