The Minister of Transport, Oscar Puentehas appeared before the media alongside Ángel García de la Bandera, Adif traffic directorand José Alfonso Gálvez, RENFE operations director.
At the beginning of the press conference, the minister himself made it clear that the Government of Spain was carrying out a complex investigation so that “all factors are analyzed”, in addition to urging not to talk about hasty causes in order to be as “respectful as possible with the victims and families.”
Shortly after, Angel García de la Bandera, Adif Traffic Director, would begin to explain the accident itself, minute by minute and second by second. He emphasized that the company will be open at all times to collaborate with the investigation and that “we want to provide transparency in the face of so much information and all the information available.”
Angel García de la Bandera, Adif Traffic Director
As reported, the train leaving Malaga left at 6:40 p.m., while the one from Madrid left half an hour earlier, at 6:10 p.m. The accident occurred at 7:43 p.m.. According to Ángel García, he also explained that at 7:45 p.m. a train driver who was going to cross the same road “He points out that he had become hooked on the catenary” and that “it had no voltage”, the latter at 7:46 p.m. Around 7:48 p.m., an attempt was made to contact the affected driver without a response.
Later “they communicate that there is a derailment and that there is a small fire related to the hauling, perhaps. In this call the driver asks that traffic in the direction of Seville be cut off and the controller tells him that he agrees because there is no train coming nearby.”
Shortly afterwards, at 7:50 p.m., the emergency services are mobilized and all protocols are activated. At 8:15 p.m. crises begin to arise at the national level due to “the importance of a case of derailment”. Throughout this point, he has also detailed another key point: “We do not have the specific moment of the collision of the two trains because we do not have it.”
The Traffic Director himself has explained what the different inspections carried out in 2025 have been. At this point he explained that in May 2025 the change of lanes and sleepers were completed. On November 5, a tour of the tracks was made so as not to miss any point; on November 21, a dynamic exultation was held. to analyze accelerations and on January 7 a complete check of the status that was placed in May is carried out.
Regarding this point, he indicated that “no failure was detected that a priori evidenced a relationship with the accident. With respect to materials, all high-speed systems have very high controls,” in the four inspections carried out.
Jose Alfonso Gálvez, operations director of Renfe
Time to appear for Jose Alfonso GalvezRenfe’s director of operations, in which he reported that at 8:50 p.m. six groups were formed in the crisis room: a coordination and telephone attention group, a logistics group to organize all the means, a psychological assistance group, a financial and insurance external communication group and a last technical assistance group for all the issues that arise.
At 9:00 p.m. the center for family members is activated and in the first minutes 50 health interventions and 47 psychological interventionsinterventions that occur in other stations.
Means have also been mobilized that will serve as a means of transportation and shuttle for those people who need it, to which they have also emphasized that “do not travel if it is not totally necessary” so that the different workers can use these vehicles.
Oscar Puente
The minister has also indicated that “Trains from the same day and the previous day that passed through that area have been examined and marks have been detected on one of the trains, especially the one that passed moments before.”.
On the other hand, Puente wanted to have words of gratitude for the Emergency services, health services, security forces and railway company workers and, of course, to the residents of Adamuz and the rest of the nearby towns who have dedicated themselves to caring for the victim.
Likewise, he has stated that “We are not going to hide and we are going to treat everything with the greatest transparency possible. “It is a particularly painful moment and we should not call into question our public transport network.”
Likewise, he has clarified that at no time can a conclusion be reached regarding the marks that were found on the train that derailed, leaving that section to the experts who are investigating the matter: “It is not easy to clarify a motive with a single clue.“.
Strike, Rodalies de Gelida accident and current situation
With respect to the strike called for February 9, 10 and 11explained that “we don’t think it’s the best” and that “we are going to try to address their demands without harming users and the railway system.”
Regarding the Rodalies de Gelida accident, the minister has indicated that “The feeling we have is that the wall falls as the train passes, so the room for maneuver was zero.”.
It is worth remembering that at the moment and as reported by the authorities who are at the scene, there are two people who remain missing, in addition to the 43 people died.
