The collision happened at 8.54 on Wednesday, 28 October, when an AVE train operated by Renfe struck an Iryo train ahead of it on the route from Madrid to Seville. Both trains had left Madrid for Seville. The impact derailed the last two cars of the train that was hit. By Thursday, 29 October, ministries were reporting at least 69 dead and 110 injured. Among the dead is Fátima Báñez, 59, president of the Fundación CEOE and a former employment minister in Popular Party governments, who was seated on the Iryo and was travelling to Seville for a business event. Her death was confirmed on Thursday by Miguel Garrido, president of CEIM and vice president of CEOE, on social media. A 24-year-old long jumper from the AD Sprint club in Madrid, who lived in Germany, was also killed, and the Spanish athletics federation paid tribute to her.
Defensor del Pueblo Ángel Gabilondo said the accident was of great gravity and that its cause will have to be clarified. He noted that reports point to human error but said it was not his place to judge that. Several Spanish ministries observed a minute of silence on Thursday, and Somos Asturies, through spokesperson Covadonga Tomé, called for an immediate review of rail infrastructure and safety systems. In Logroño, a rally called by the ADIF works committee in La Rioja was held. Government delegate Beatriz Arraiz confirmed that a family from La Rioja had filed a missing-person complaint with the Guardia Civil, declining to say more out of respect for the family.