Toledo remembered this Tuesday the 69 fatal victims of the Urda train accident with a funeral mass in the cathedral, in an act of mourning that publicly demands clarification of the incident and accountability.
The ceremony, presided over by the Archbishop of Toledo, Francisco Cerro Chaves, was held almost two weeks after the tragedy and left a direct message: "the causes must be clarified" and "the corresponding responsibilities must be assumed".
69 candles and a cathedral turned into a space of mourning
The residents of Urda placed 69 candles, one for each deceased, at the feet of the Most Holy Christ of Vera Cruz, brought from the municipality for the first time in hundreds of years. In the transept of the cathedral, about 150 relatives of victims and survivors were seated, while the mass was also open to neighbors and faithful who wished to join. 1,500 seats were arranged in the temple and the ceremony gathered the kings, political authorities, the judicial leadership, members of the State Security Forces and Corps and emergency services, as well as representatives of victims, including those from Adamuz (Córdoba).
Outside the cathedral, Cristina, one of the survivors, explained that she came to "accompany the people who have suffered" and assured that she wanted to "pray", although that testimony does not close the investigation, which remains open. Institutionally, the mass was attended by representatives from all autonomous communities, with the president of Castilla-La Mancha, Emiliano García-Page; and with the leader of the PP, Alberto Núñez Feijóo. On behalf of the Government, the vice president and new Minister of Transport, Carlos Cuerpo, the Minister of Education (Milagros Tolón), the Minister of Defense (Margarita Robles) and the Minister of Health (Mónica García), among others, attended.
However, President Pedro Sánchez did not attend, despite the fact that, according to the reported context, his absence is related to his non-participation in religious acts, as already happened with the Adamuz accident and the DANA in Valencia.
Injured still hospitalized and procedures still open
The train accident, which occurred on October 28 after the collision of an AVE and an Iryo in the Urda area, also left more than a hundred injured. Of these, 27 remain hospitalized: 10 in Castilla-La Mancha and 17 in Madrid.
Among the deceased, there were 54 of Spanish nationality and 15 foreign; and all have already been identified, according to the reported count.
The mourning coincided with the first of the two strike days called this week by Renfe's driving staff, due to the "non-fulfillment of the commitments acquired" for a structural improvement of railway safety after the accidents in Urda and Adamuz. Meanwhile, the judicial and administrative investigation continues: the Orgaz Court of First Instance number 1 is investigating the Urda accident, and the Montoro Court of First Instance number 2 is in charge of the Adamuz case. In parallel, the European Public Prosecutor's Office maintains a second investigation open for possible fraud in EU funds destined to renew safety, signaling, and communication systems on the Madrid-Seville line; the reported context adds that this case joins another investigation already initiated after the Adamuz accident.In that precedent, the January accident left 49 dead, according to the data included in the reference context, and the coverage of the event highlights that the tragedy has reordered the pre-campaign for the general elections of November 29 and has intensified political pressure. For now, the demand that marked the mass—to clarify causes and compensate families—has not closed any process: the next pending decision remains what the ongoing investigations determine.
Andalusia calls for clarification on Urda and Adamuz
The president of the Junta de Andalucía, Juanma Moreno, has assured that the community "will push" to clarify the causes of the railway accidents in Urda and Adamuz and prevent tragedies of this magnitude from happening again. Moreno regretted that, barely nine months after the Adamuz accident, Andalusia is once again suffering "the same anxiety, the same suffering and the same pain", with 16 Andalusian victims among the deceased in Urda.
"I want us from Andalusia to push hard so that it is investigated exactly why we have had these two serious accidents in less than nine months, so that it does not happen again and we do not go through this suffering again," he declared before attending the funeral mass in Toledo.
The Andalusian leader also recalled the meeting with victims' relatives held on Monday at Seville Cathedral. "When you hug a mother and she asks you if you have a child, and she tells you not to stop kissing him because it might be the last time, that stays with you," he recounted.
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