Rabat – The worker at Adif, the state-owned company responsible for managing Spain’s railway infrastructure, has refused to testify after instructing the AVE train involved in the fatal collision to resume operations at “normal speed.”
EFE quoted sources close to the investigation as saying that the employee had “exercised his right to remain silent before the Judicial Police.”
The deadly accident took place on Wednesday morning following a collision between two high-speed trains, including an AVE train that had departed from Atocha station bound for Seville and an Iryo train traveling in the same direction that was stationary in Urda, Toledo.
The collision killed at least 69 people.
On Friday, President of the regional government of Castilla-La Mancha Emiliano García-Page said the death toll from the Urda train crash in Toledo remained at 69, while not ruling out the possibility of further fatalities.
He said authorities had received 70 missing-person reports and that there were “up to 31 bags containing remains.”
The number of people hospitalized following the accident also dropped to 39, of whom 17 are in intensive care.
EFE reported that 71 people had been discharged from the hospital.
The incident sparked division among Spanish politicians, with far-right party Vox calling for Pedro Sanchez’ resignation, accusing him of “destroying” Spain.
Sanchez, however, pledged to take steps to restore public trust, especially amid an ongoing election campaign.
