The deputy general director of Renfe, Sergio Bueno, has defended that the derailed train was "scrupulously complying with its inspections on time and form" after a fire declared in the tail cabin of an AVE, at the height of Ricla (Zaragoza), which covered the route Madrid Puerta de Atocha-Almudena Grandes-Figueres, forced the interruption of railway circulation during the afternoon.
Although he has acknowledged that he does not know the exact date of manufacture of the train and has not specified whether inspections had been carried out recently, he emphasized before the media that "all the rolling stock of Renfe is in perfect condition of inspection and maintenance."
Circulation between Madrid and Barcelona began to normalize late on Monday, and Renfe's forecasts indicated that all trains that had been stopped would resume their journey around 11:00 PM.
According to the data provided by the company, the incident has affected a total of "33 trains," "18 of which could not leave their station of origin" and "14 have been stopped at stations." In total, "12,979 travelers" have been affected, as detailed by Renfe in a statement.
Renfe has indicated that, for the moment, the causes that have triggered the fire are unknown and that "it has already initiated an investigation process to clarify the facts." The operator has also conveyed apologies "to all affected passengers" and has emphasized its commitment to "the safety of railway transport."
The incident was detected around 4:05 PM on Monday and, following the established safety protocols, the 283 passengers traveling on the train have been evacuated from the convoy without any injuries being reported.
The firefighters have declared the fire extinguished in the mid-afternoon, after the action of the emergency services dispatched to the area. From that moment on and "once the condition of the infrastructures was checked," "Adif has initiated the gradual restoration of circulation."