Bridge Spokesperson Calls Track Failure a “Recurring Issue

The railway track breakage, which is clearly at the origin​ of the derailment of the Iryo train that collided with an Alvia on Sunday near Adamuz (Córdoba) leaving 45 dead and 150 injured, is a “recurring problem”​ in EU railway systems. This is the opinion of ⁣Transport Minister Óscar Puente, in the press conference he gave after learning the‌ CIAF report,​ which points ⁣to a​ track defect as the origin of‍ the​ accident. Along with the president of Adif, Luis Pedro Marco de la Peña, puente has worked to demonstrate that ​ all inspections ⁤had been passed and approved, that‌ the Adamuz section had even more ⁤inspections than usual, and that, among them, an ultrasound test was carried out on November⁤ 10 of last‍ year capable of‍ detecting a break or a problem in the welding that was not discovered until the derailment‌ of a train last Sunday.

“Rail breakage is⁣ a⁤ recurring problem in European railway networks. It is a concern, obviously,” ⁤said Puente,​ adding that such a well-known risk means that Adif has research projects on this issue.

According⁢ to the ⁤report on the first “findings” of its inquiry⁣ into the Adamuz accident published by the ⁢Railway Accident Investigation Commission (CIAF) this Friday, the track breakage was caused perhaps by a problem in the welding that will be taken to the laboratory​ for analysis and that, as explained by Puente, was so imperceptible that it did not even cause⁣ a cut in the electrical current surrounding the track ​that would have raised an alarm that something was wrong. In contrast, among⁣ the documents shown this Friday is one from Talgo, the manufacturer of the Renfe train ⁣that passed⁢ through Adamuz at 7:09 p.m. on the‌ day of the accident and one of the ‍three that ​also presented notches on the bogies and that, although it was detected that their instability ⁤values exceeded “normal behaviour”,⁣ did not reach “warning” or “emergency” ⁣values ​​provided in the​ system.

As ⁣recommended by the CIAF itself after the Angrois accident,⁤ one of the tests that could detect internal cracks or failures not visible in the rails ⁤is ultrasound, which in the case of Adamuz was carried out ​on November ​10, ⁤in a railway ⁣section in which Puente has underlined that in recent ⁤months the number of inspections carried out “far exceeds the‍ average of the qu