Spain will pay €20 mln ($24 mln) in compensation to victims of last week’s high-speed train crash in Adamuz, Transport Minister Oscar Puente announced. The disaster, which killed 45 people and injured more than 150, occurred near the southern city of Cordoba on January 18 and represents one of the deadliest train accidents in recent European history, and the worst in Spain since 2013.
Families of those killed will receive €216,000 each within three months. This includes €72,000 in tax-free government aid, a €72,000 advance from insurance, and €72,000 from mandatory travel insurance.
Puente said, «We know that ordinary procedures and legal timelines do not always respond to the vital urgency of a tragedy like this. Economic uncertainty cannot be compounded on top of the emotional pain.»
Payments to injured passengers will range from €2,400 to €84,000, he added.
The minister has faced pressure following the Adamuz crash and other incidents the same week, including the death of a train driver in Catalonia and two additional non-fatal accidents. The opposition People’s Party has called for his resignation, but Puente told reporters he acted with a calm conscience and had communicated all available information to citizens.
Catalonia’s Rodalies commuter rail service also suffered major disruptions last week after drivers refused to work over safety concerns and a software failure caused its train control centre to collapse on Monday.
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