Spain suffers third rail crash in less than a week after train collides into crane - injuring six people
Six people were taken to hospital after the incident which followed two other serious crashes earlier in the week
Spain has been rocked by its third railway crash in the space of a week after a train crashed into a crane, injuring six people.
Listen to this article
The collision took place close to the southern settlement of Alumbres, in Cartagena, at around midday on Thursday.
Six people were taken to two separate hospitals to be treated for minor injuries, including one person who sustained several cuts and two who had anxiety attacks, the Health Department said.
Local authorities say the cause of the crash has not yet been determined but it is thought that the carriage struck a crane on its commute.
Read more: Driver dead and at least 37 injured as second Spanish train derails in Barcelona
đź”´AMPLIACIĂ“N | “HabĂa una pickup con un brazo mecánico trabajando en una vivienda cercana. La situaciĂłn es aparatosa sin mayor trascendencia", ha explicado LĂłpez Miras. El accidente ha dejado seis heridos leves https://t.co/K8nCzsvbyw pic.twitter.com/uboyT8Kxey
— EL PAĂŤS (@el_pais) January 22, 2026
The mayor of Murcia, Noelia Arroyo, told local newspaper El PaĂs: "Apparently, as the train passed, it collided with the articulated arm that was sticking out above the track, and the train grazed it as it passed."
The service, which had been carrying 16 passengers, did not derail and remains on the tracks while emergency services carry out a rescue operation.
The crane was reportedly working in the area on "maintenance tasks unrelated to the infrastructure" according to a Murcia government official.
Spanish rail operator Adifs posted on social media that the line was interrupted due to "the intrusion into the infrastructure gauge by a crane not belonging to the railway operation."
A later posting said services had resumed.
The crash is the third in less than a week after 42 people were killed after a train travelling between Malaga and Madrid, had derailed at Adamuz station, near Cordoba, on Sunday evening.
On Tuesday, a train driver died and at least 37 others were injured after another derailment in Barcelona.
Local officials said that a Rodalies commuter train collided with a retaining wall which had fallen onto the tracks between Gelida and Sant Sadurni.
The main train drivers' union SEMAF in the country previously called a three-day nationwide strike from February 9 to 11 on over safety standards, before the most recent crash.
They said in a statement: "The serious accidents in Adamuz and Gelida, both with fatalities, are a turning point in demanding all necessary actions to guarantee the safety of railway operation."