A Spanish court said Friday that an investigation into one of Spain's worst rail disasters, in which 80 people died in 2013, would be reopened to determine if state rail firm Adif was partly responsible.
The train derailed and slammed into a concrete wall on the outskirts of Santiago de Compostela in the northwestern region of Galicia after approaching a curve at more than twice the speed limit on that piece of the track.
The driver of the train has been charged with negligent homicide and released without bail pending trial. He is the only person to face criminal charges over the accident.
A pre-trial investigation of the July 24, 2013 crash carried out by a court in Galicia concluded the accident was caused by a lapse in attention by the driver, who was on the telephone at the time of the crash with another rail employee.
The driver in 2014 apologised to the victims of the crash, which killed 80 people and injured another 144, making it the deadliest rail accident in Spain since 1944.
The decision to only charge the driver was appealed by victims' families and the drivers defence team who have demanded a parliamentary commission to investigate the causes of the crash.
They argue state-owned Adif, which is in charge of the tracks, bears some responsibility for the accident.
The families say there was a lack of automatic breaking systems near the accident site and a lack of sufficient preventative measures, such as warning signs further before the bend.
An appeals court in Galicia said on Friday that the investigation into the accident would be reopened.
"There are indications of a failure in the method applied by Adif, which resulted in an error in its assessment of the size of the risk," the court said in its ruling.
A Spanish court said Friday that an investigation into one of Spain’s worst rail disasters, in which 80 people died in 2013, would be reopened to determine if state rail firm Adif was partly responsible.
The train derailed and slammed into a concrete wall on the outskirts of Santiago de Compostela in the northwestern region of Galicia after approaching a curve at more than twice the speed limit on that piece of the track.
The driver of the train has been charged with negligent homicide and released without bail pending trial. He is the only person to face criminal charges over the accident.
A pre-trial investigation of the July 24, 2013 crash carried out by a court in Galicia concluded the accident was caused by a lapse in attention by the driver, who was on the telephone at the time of the crash with another rail employee.
The driver in 2014 apologised to the victims of the crash, which killed 80 people and injured another 144, making it the deadliest rail accident in Spain since 1944.
The decision to only charge the driver was appealed by victims’ families and the drivers defence team who have demanded a parliamentary commission to investigate the causes of the crash.
They argue state-owned Adif, which is in charge of the tracks, bears some responsibility for the accident.
The families say there was a lack of automatic breaking systems near the accident site and a lack of sufficient preventative measures, such as warning signs further before the bend.
An appeals court in Galicia said on Friday that the investigation into the accident would be reopened.
“There are indications of a failure in the method applied by Adif, which resulted in an error in its assessment of the size of the risk,” the court said in its ruling.
