Spain: In the trial of railway drama, the tears and anger of families

Spain: In the trial of railway drama, the tears and anger of families

Santiago de Compostela, Spain: Nine years after the Santiago de Compostela train accident that killed 80 people in 2013, justice began Wednesday to examine the failures that led to the worst Spanish railway tragedy since 1944 in a tense climate.

Relatives of the victims arrived at dawn in small groups, their faces closed, their eyes sometimes weeping, and took their place in a hall of the City of Culture in Galicia (Northwest Spain), exceptionally transformed into a court in view of the large number of civil parties present.

“Today we are tired, sad and angry, and we want this nightmare to end. We want to finally know everything that happened,” Maria told AFP before the hearing. incident.

“They went to see a fireworks show. We said + take the train, not the car +, thinking it’s safer,” says the sixty-year-old, her throat tied, which sparked “a very difficult mourning.” From “anguish” and “unbearable pain”.

“If the driver had done his job well, my daughter and her cousin would have been alive, that’s for sure. But he could have felt ill, and had a disorder…You can’t assign a high-speed train (…) to one person ‘, deplores it.

gross negligence»

Le 24 juillet 2013 au soir, le train à grand vitesse Alvia 04155 en provenance de Madrid avait brutalement déraillé peu avant son arrivée à Saint-Jacques-de-Compostelle, avant de s’encastrer dans un mur d’enceinte sittre kilom è ès City.

Eighty people were killed, including 68 Spaniards, two Frenchmen, two Americans and several Latin Americans. The accident, which occurred on the day before Saint Jack’s Day, which gathers thousands of Catholic pilgrims in Galicia each year, also injured more than 140 people.

See also  Ronaldo's gesture of annoyance with his coach makes Portugal talk

The investigation quickly revealed the excessive speed. The Renfe train, a Spanish railway company, was traveling at 179 km/h when it derailed, while the speed in this section was limited to 80 km/h.

The train driver, Francisco Garzón, who was on the phone with the train controller shortly before the accident showed “recklessness”, judges assessed. This 52-year-old man at the time of the accident asked for a “pardon” for the victims a year after the facts.

Next to him appears Andres Cortapetarte, former safety director of ADEF, director of the Spanish railway network, accused of not conducting a risk study on the turn in question, devoid of signaling, alerting and automatic braking systems.

Four years in prison was sought against each of the two men, who were tried for “murder resulting from serious professional negligence”. In total, more than 600 witnesses and experts are expected to testify at this trial, which is scheduled to run through February 10.

insults

On the sidelines of the first day of hearings, devoted to points of action, Francisco Garzón’s lawyer, Manuel Prieto, called on the court not to hold his client fully responsible for the deviation from course.

“All humans make mistakes, but it is the lack of (safety) measures that allow human error to turn into an accident,” the lawyer asserted, describing Francisco Garzon — who remained silent on the defendants stand — as “anxious” and “stressed.”

A message conveyed by Jesus Dominguez, spokesperson for the victims’ association Alvia 04155, which for several years denounced the “failures” of the state and the “slowness” of Spanish justice, accusing him of neglecting the issue of political responsibilities.

See also  Hospes introduces Portugal's first 5-star hotel in Porto

“We have a sense of bitterness because this trial comes after nearly 10 years” after the facts and thus too late “for some people who have since died unfortunately,” he asserted, lamenting that “the driver only” has so far apologized to the victims.

A sign of the anger accumulating during nine years of investigation, Adeev’s former president, Andres Cortapetart, was so insulted by families at the end of the first day of debates that someone hit him on his way out of court.

You May Also Like

About the Author: Irene Alves

"Bacon ninja. Guru do álcool. Explorador orgulhoso. Ávido entusiasta da cultura pop."

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *