A Rodalies train with passengers collided with a retaining wall that had fallen onto the R4 track in Gelida. The impact caused the train to derail, which was traveling between Sant Sadurní d'Anoia and Gelida towards Manresa. According to information confirmed by the Firefighters, there is one fatality and more than 30 injured, five of them in serious condition. The affected individuals have been transported to Moisès Broggi, Bellvitge, and Vilafranca Hospitals.
Various emergency services, firefighters, and Mossos d'Esquadra are working at the accident site. The Central Airport and Public Transport Area Agents responsible for investigating railway accidents in Catalonia "have moved to the scene to begin the initial investigation procedures."
Images of the accident in GelidaJoan Mateu ParraAP
The retaining wall collapsed after a day of heavy rain in Catalonia, causing numerous issues in the road network and multiple incidents on the railway network in the region. The impact was on the front of the train, with the first carriage being the most affected. Firefighter inspector Claudi Gallardo suggested that a possible cause could be a landslide due to the weather, but urged caution and cooperation with the teams on-site to clarify what happened.
As a result of the accident, the Ferrocat Plan's pre-alert phase has been activated in that section. Firefighters have deployed 70 personnel with 35 units, including members of the Special Actions Group (GRAE), and around fifteen police units.
The identity of the deceased victim is still to be confirmed, and it is unknown whether they were the train driver or one of the individuals in the cabin at the time of the accident, according to initial reports.
Politically, up to three representatives of the Government of Catalonia have traveled to the accident site: the Minister of the Interior, Núria Parlon, the Minister of Territory, Silvia Paneque, and the Minister of the Presidency, Albert Dalmau - President Salvador Illa remains hospitalized at the Hospital Vall d'Hebron in Barcelona - in addition to the Government Delegate in Catalonia, Carlos Prieto. The Chief Commissioner of the Mossos, Miquel Esquius, has also gone to the scene to "get firsthand information on the situation and the people on the affected train."
Minister of Territory Silvia Paneque stated that the Rodalies service, suspended throughout the network following the accident, will not resume until technicians certify it is safe through the so-called "white marches."
The Minister emphasized that the Rodalies service will not resume until there is "total assurance" of safe operation, although the section affected by the accident will remain suspended for a longer period as a thorough analysis of the accident's causes will be necessary.
According to Silvia Paneque, who appeared before the media alongside Interior Minister Núria Parlon, the "most likely hypothesis" regarding the accident's causes is that the retaining wall that hit the train collapsed due to the recent days' heavy rains, leading to the train derailment.
Catalan Police have deployed drone units to investigate the incident and capture images of the scene.
The emergency phone line 112 received a total of 28 calls related to the derailment, the first one at 9:02 PM, the time of the accident. Traffic in that area has been completely interrupted.
After assessing the initial effects of the accident, a center for assisting those affected by the accident in Gelida has been set up at the Casablanca Urbanization civic center, near the accident site.
In parallel, another train derailed in Blanes and Maçanet-Massanes after "an axle came off the railway," as confirmed by Adif late this afternoon. The train had only ten passengers, and there were no injuries.
It was not the only incident in the Catalan railway system: around 130 passengers on an AVE train were trapped inside a tunnel due to a catenary malfunction. Renfe had to transfer the affected passengers to another train. According to the company, passengers did not have to disembark onto the tracks; instead, a transfer was made via walkways to a parallel train.
Another 30 passengers on a second train, near Fornells de la Selva, had to be evacuated on Tuesday by Mossos and Firefighters after a tree fell on the tracks.