A collision between two high-speed trains carrying hundreds of passengers in southern Spain killed at least 21 people and injured more than 70 on Sunday, January 18, the emergency services said.

A train traveling from Malaga to Madrid derailed near Adamuz, crossing onto the other track where it hit an oncoming train, which also derailed, Spain’s ADIF rail body posted on X. “We have received calls from people reporting that there were injured and trapped,” a spokesperson for the Andalusian emergency services told AFP.

Antonio Sanz, the top emergencies official in the southern region of Andalusia, told a press conference that at least 73 people had been injured. Spanish media said the number could reach 100 with passengers trapped in the carriages.

“The problem is that the carriages are twisted, so the metal is twisted with the people inside,” Francisco Carmona, head of firefighters in Cordoba, told public broadcaster RTVE. “We have even had to remove a dead person to be able to reach someone alive. It is hard, tricky work,” he added.

Television images showed medical crews and fire services at the scene. A journalist from public broadcaster RNE who was traveling on one of the trains said the impact had felt like “an earthquake.” Passengers had used emergency hammers to break carriages windows and get out, he said.

Spanish media reports suggested that a total of 400 people were on the two trains.

The royal palace said on X that King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia were following the news “with great concern,” offering “our most heartfelt condolences to the relatives and loved ones of the dead, as well as our love and wishes for a swift recovery to the injured.”

Spain boasts Europe’s largest high-speed rail network, with more than 3,000 kilometers of dedicated tracks connecting major cities including Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Valencia and Malaga.