Spain seeks EU help to investigate deadly rail crash

The Spanish government has requested technical assistance from the European Union Agency for Railways (ERA) to investigate a collision between two high-speed trains that killed 69 people near Urda, central Spain, on Oct. 28, reported Xinhua.

The collision occurred when a train operated by Spain's state-owned railway company Renfe struck the rear of a stationary train operated by private rail company Iryo.

European Commissioner for Sustainable Transport and Tourism Apostolos Tzitzikostas confirmed on Wednesday that the Spanish investigation authority had asked the ERA to support the investigation, and the ERA would provide all the technical assistance needed.

Tzitzikostas said the investigation would remain under the direction and the authority of the Spanish investigators, adding that its aim was to establish the facts.

He cautioned that it was still early to draw conclusions about the accident, stressing that safety was the first priority across all modes of transport.

Also on Wednesday, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced that First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy, Trade and Enterprise Carlos Cuerpo would temporarily take charge of the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility following Oscar Puente's resignation on Tuesday.

Puente said he was stepping down following Spain's second major rail crash this year. The earlier collision, near Adamuz in the southern province of Cordoba on Jan. 18, killed 46 people.