The identification work for the victims of the Urda (Toledo) railway accident continues to advance and has already made it possible to identify 66 of the 69 people who died in last Wednesday’s tragedy on October 28. This has been communicated by the High Court of Justice of Castilla-La Mancha (TSJCLM), based on the latest data collected by the Integrated Data Center (CID), established after the activation of the national medico-forensic and scientific police action protocol in incidents with multiple victims. The provisional toll of the disaster remains at 69 deaths, while specialists work to complete the identification of the three remaining people.
According to the information provided by the judicial authorities during the early hours of this Monday, November 2, the 66 identified victims correspond to 54 Spanish citizens and 12 foreigners. The work has been carried out since the day of the accident at the Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences of Toledo and Ciudad Real, with the participation of forensic doctors, specialists in genetic identification and Civil Guard officers. The objective is to complete as soon as possible the procedures necessary to officially communicate the identifications to the families and facilitate the handing over of the bodies.
So far, 60 of the 66 identifications have been notified to relatives, while the remaining six will be communicated as quickly as possible. Of the 60 victims whose identification has already been relayed to their next of kin, 36 are men and 24 women. In addition, 47 deceased persons are already at the disposal of their families, according to the latest official report.
Three victims pending identification: two Australians and one Japanese
The three people still pending identification would be foreign citizens, according to the information conveyed by the Integrated Data Center. Specifically, three missing persons reports remain active corresponding to two people of Australian nationality and one Japanese person, whose families have already been located by the authorities.
The definitive identification of these victims is linked to the efforts of international cooperation and the arrival of their relatives in Spain. According to the TSJCLM, the relatives have expressed their intention to travel personally to the country to carry out the identification procedures, so the authorities are awaiting for them to be able to complete that process. International collaboration is especially important in those cases in which it is necessary to obtain genetic samples or documentation from other countries.
As for the nationalities of the victims already identified, in addition to the 54 Spanish, the authorities have confirmed four Americans and one person of each of the following nationalities: Argentine, Canadian, Czech, French, Japanese, Mexican, Portuguese and Tunisian. These data reflect the international dimension of the railway tragedy, in which passengers from different countries were traveling.
Fingerprints allow the identification of 53 victims and DNA that of another 13
The identification operation has resorted to different scientific procedures to determine with certainty the identity of the deceased persons. Of the 66 identifications carried out, 53 have been achieved through fingerprint analysis, developed by the Criminalistics Service of the Guardia Civil. The 13 remaining have been completed through DNA tests, carried out by the National Institute of Toxicology in collaboration with specialists from the armed institute.
The work began immediately after the accident and has continued uninterruptedly since last Wednesday. The 69 autopsies corresponding to the provisional count of fatalities have already been carried out, while the professionals continue the analysis and identification tasks of the pending cases. This work makes it possible to establish the identity of the deceased with the necessary guarantees before formally communicating the results to the families.
The procedure provides for a series of actions aimed at guaranteeing the rigor of each identification and protecting the next of kin. Once the identity of a victim has been scientifically confirmed, the authorities must carry out a personal, in-person notification to their family, before completing the corresponding procedures for making the mortal remains available. In this way, the aim is to prevent family members from learning sensitive information about their loved ones through public communications or unofficial information.
More than 60 professionals are working on the identification of the deceased
The medico-legal operation deployed in Toledo has involved the participation of more than 60 professionals since last Wednesday. Among them are doctors from the institutes of Legal Medicine of Toledo, Ciudad Real and Cáceres, as well as two forensic doctors advising the Ministry of the Presidency, Justice and Relations with the Cortes. Six autopsy technicians from different provinces of Castilla-La Mancha have also taken part.
The National Institute of Toxicology has assigned nine specialists to the genetic tests carried out on the victims, while the Guardia Civil maintains a deployment of 27 agents belonging to the Criminalistics Service and Judicial Police units. These personnel are in charge of both identifications through fingerprints and the collection and analysis of genetic samples from family members who have filed missing persons reports.
The deployment also includes psychological support for the next of kin of the deceased, with professionals specialized in accompaniment during emergency and grief situations. The Military Emergency Unit (UME) provides logistical support to the Institute of Legal Medicine, providing material resources and operational capabilities to facilitate forensic actions and the management of the bodies.
Tasks continue to complete the identification of the 69 victims
The confirmation of 66 identities represents a new advance in the device deployed after one of the most serious railway accidents recorded in Spain. The toll has increased progressively over the last few days: early on Sunday, 56 deceased had been identified, while the latest update, released during the early hours of Monday, raises the figure to 66. This means that the specialists have managed to confirm another ten identities during the course of the day.
The advance has also made it possible to increase the number of families who have received the official notification about their relatives. However, there are still six confirmed identifications pending notification and three victims whose identity must be definitively established, so the actions will continue until the corresponding procedure for the 69 deceased persons is completed.
The judicial authorities insist that the work is being carried out with the utmost rigor and speed, keeping as a priority the identification of all the victims and the care of their families. Meanwhile, the judicial investigation into the causes of the Urda railway accident remains open, in parallel with the medico-forensic tasks and the actions that continue to be carried out at the scene of the tragedy.