A a train derailed this Saturday afternoon in the heart of Madridin the underground section of the AVE that connects the Atocha and Chamartín stations. It could have been a tragedy, but fortunately the convoy crashed did not carry passengers. There were only two train drivers on board, who were taken care of by Samur emergency services after they managed to get out of the train on their own, bruised and suffering from an anxiety attack.
Official sources confirmed to OKDIARIO that the two machinists were professionals responsible for maintenance tasks. According to the first data collected by the technicians and also provided by the drivers themselves, at the time the convoy was traveling through the tunnel between Atocha and Chamartin stations Several wagons broke away and were thrown out of control, downhill, until they collided with infrastructure which slowed them down.
The train drivers did not suffer any serious injuries. In fact, one of them arrived at Chamartín station without any problems. The other was transferred to a health center.
Although the official sources consulted initially indicated that it was a Cercanías train, it was later confirmed to OKDIARIO that the accident occurred in the tunnel section of the high-speed line between the two main stations in Madrid.
This accident caused serious problems in rail traffic, as Renfe itself admitted. Through social networks, he indicated in the middle of the afternoon that “the circulation of trains on the two tracks of the high-speed tunnel between Madrid Chamartín and Madrid Puerta de Atocha had been interrupted due to an incident during ‘a maneuver’. And he stressed that “the high-speed trains that connect Madrid to eastern Spain are affected.”
Train traffic is interrupted on both tracks of the high-speed tunnel between Madrid Chamartín and Madrid Puerta de Atocha due to an incident during a maneuver. High-speed trains that connect Madrid to eastern Spain are affected.
– InfoRenfe (@Inforenfe) October 19, 2024
The agitation that arose was enormous. Emergency services were immediately mobilized, fearing that the derailment could have fatal consequences. Fortunately, this was not the case, but the impact is serious because it affects this essential axis of rail communication which links public transport both in the Madrid capital and with the large urban centers of its metropolitan environment.
This accident is added to the list of incidents accumulated by Cercanías trains in Madrid, which depend on the Ministry of Public Works. In recent years, Madrid authorities have insisted on the need to improve this infrastructure and have raised the level of their complaints to Public Works.
This is not the first derailment of a Cercanías train in the Madrid capital amid this sequence of railway incidents. Less than a year ago, in early December 2023, another train derailed while preparing to enter Atocha station. Official sources attribute it to the “exit of an axis”. Several passengers were slightly injured during this incident, which occurred just ten days after another similar incident.
