A fracture in a straight section of track occurred prior to the passage of a high-speed train that derailed, causing last Sunday's rail disaster in which 45 people died, an initial report has found.
A train run by private company Iryo derailed last Sunday and its rear carriages crossed on to the opposite track into the path of an oncoming train run by state-owned Renfe.
The CIAF rail investigation commission stated that the Iryo train's front carriages, which stayed on the track, had notches in their wheels, a finding consistent with earlier trains that also passed over the fractured segment. A nearly 40cm gap in the track is now the focus of the investigation.
The collision occurred around 19:45 local time (18:45 GMT), shortly after the Iryo train departed Málaga for Madrid. The crash involved the derailing of the train's last three carriages and a collision with the Renfe train, contributing to most fatalities occurring in the front carriages of the state-operated train.
Spanish Transport Minister Óscar Puente has confirmed the presence of grooves on the wheels of the Iryo train and indicated they represent a significant link to the fracture. Three other trains that traversed the track shortly before the Iryo also exhibited similar anomalies.
The CIAF report suggests this situation could not have been detected beforehand, labeling its findings as a working hypothesis awaiting further analysis. This tragedy marks the worst rail crash in Spain since 2013, where a previous incident claimed 80 lives.
