At least 30 people were killed in a collision between two high-speed trains in Spain

At least 30 people were killed on Wednesday when two high-speed trains collided south of Madrid, according to a new toll announced by local authorities to Agence France-Presse, in the second disaster of its kind in Spain this year.

The mayor of Orda, Manuel Galan, told Spanish state television (TVE) that "two trains collided, and there are injured people."

Government sources in the Castilla-La Mancha region (central), where the accident occurred, reported that 30 people were killed in this accident.

The spokesman for the regional authorities had previously reported “at least ten deaths,” noting that “it is possible that this number may rise.”

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who is seeking to win a new term in the elections scheduled for next month, expressed his "shock" at the collision.

He said on the X platform: “I am shocked by the serious train accident in Toledo,” south of Madrid, expressing “my love, solidarity and support for all the victims and their families.”

A Spanish emergency services spokesman told Agence France-Presse that the two trains collided shortly before nine in the morning (08:00 GMT).

He said that "all resources are currently being mobilized," including "several fire brigades, three helicopters, and two mobile intensive care units."

Miguel, a passenger who was traveling with several of his colleagues in the back car of one of the two trains, described to Spanish Radio Cuba the moment the accident occurred.

He said, "We heard a huge bang, a really huge crashing sound that lasted 10 seconds, as if the train was about to derail. Through the right window we were able to see a crashed train, and I imagine it was the other train."

The railway infrastructure management company (Adif) confirmed the collision, noting in a post on social media that train traffic on the high-speed railway linking Madrid to the south of the country had been suspended.