Spain train crash: Driver held on homicide charges

Stills from the footage of the crash captured by a security camera at Santiago de Compostela. Picture: Getty/AFP

Minister of interior Jorge Fernandez Diaz announced the step against Francisco Jose Garzon Amo, who previously had been detained on suspicion of recklessness following Wednesday’s crash in Santiago de Compostela. “There is rational evidence to lead us to think that the driver could have eventual responsibility,” the minister told reporters.

Garzon, 52, has been discharged from the hospital, taken to the police station and was due to appear before a judge last night.

Blame has increasingly fallen on the driver, with the country’s railway agency saying it was his responsibility to brake before going into the high-risk curve where the train tumbled off the rails and smashed into a wall. But it’s still not clear whether the brakes failed or were never used, and the driver has remained silent so far.

A blood-soaked Garzon was photographed on Wednesday being escorted away from the wreckage, at first by civilians who had hurried to the scene of the accident and then by police, but it is not clear just what his medical status is.

Unconfirmed media reports said that Garzon had injured ribs. He had been expected to give a preliminary statement to judicial police as early as Thursday, but that process was delayed, reportedly due to health reasons.

In Wednesday’s crash, the train’s eight carriages packed with 218 passengers tipped over after it sped into a curve on the rail line. Diesel fuel sent flames coursing through some cabins.

Investigators are examining recording devices from the train but have not officially said how fast it was going when it derailed. An American passenger, Stephen Ward, said he was watching the train’s speed on a display screen in the carriage– and it indicated it was going 194kph (121mph), more than double the 80-kph speed limit.

A fireman carries an injured young girl from the scene following the train crash. Picture: Getty

The president of Adif, the Spanish rail agency, said that the driver should have started slowing the train 4km (2.5 miles) before the dangerous bend. He said signs clearly marked the point when the driver must begin to slow.

Normally, police take a first statement that is then examined by an investigating judge, who must then take testimony within 72 hours of the arrest. That deadlinewas yesterday.

Although that initial court hearing would be closed, it would give hints about the status of the investigation. The judge would decide whether to jail the driver as an official suspect, release him on bail, or release him without charges.

If a judge finds sufficient evidence for a criminal trial, the suspect will be charged and a trial date set.

Relatives of victimsof the crash sobbed and hugged each other Thursday near a makeshift morgue in a sports arena. Picture: AP

The wreckage still remained near the site yesterday, as passenger trains passed by. Black ribbons of mourning dotted the Santiago de Compostela and flags flew at half-staff. Makeshift shrines drew mourners to the city’s cathedral.

Someone placed flowers on a bridge above the railroad tracks, with a note reading, “We are all in solidarity with the city of Santiago.”