Madrid (CNN) -- A high-speed passenger
train derailed as it hurtled around a curve
in northwestern Spain on Wednesday, killing
77 people and injuring more than 100,
officials said.
By Thursday morning, the death toll had
reached 77, said María Pardo Ríos,
spokeswoman for the Galicia regional
supreme court. In Spain, judges are often
called out to the scenes of fatalities.
Pictures of the scene showed a train car
snapped in two and another car on fire.
Rescue crews and fellow passengers pulled
out bodies through broken windows and
pried open doors as stunned survivors
looked on. Police escorted bloodied
passengers from the wreckage.
More than 20 injured victims remained in
critical condition early Thursday, said
Agustin Hernandez Fernandez of the
Galicia infrastructure ministry.
State railway Renfe said the train crashed
on a curve several kilometers from the train
station in the city of Santiago de
Compostela.
The train had 218 passengers aboard
and was nearing the end of a six-hour
trip from Madrid to the town of
Ferrol in northwest Spain when it
derailed at 8:41 p.m., the railway said.
It was unclear how fast the train was
traveling when it crashed. The train
was capable of going up to 250
kilometers per hour (155 mph), the
chief spokesman for Renfe said.
Residents who lived near the tracks
told the Voz de Galicia newspaper
that they heard a thunderous bang
when the train crashed. Many of
them rushed to the area with
blankets and bottled water for the
injured, the newspaper reported.


http://edition.cnn.com/2013/07/24/world/europe/spain-train-crash/index.html

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