At least 39 people have been confirmed dead in a high-speed train collision in the south of Spain, according to police, and rescue efforts are continuing.

The crash occurred on Sunday when the rear of a train carrying about 300 passengers from Malaga to the capital, Madrid, came off the rails about 7:45pm (18:45 GMT) . It then slammed into an oncoming train travelling from Madrid to Huelva, another city in southern Spain, according to rail operator Adif.

The collision took place near Adamuz, a town in the province of Cordoba, about 370km (230 miles) south of Madrid.

Spanish police said 152 people were injured, five of whom were in a critical condition. A further 24 were in a serious condition, authorities said. Transport Minister Oscar Puente said the death toll was not final.

In Adamuz, a sports centre was turned into a makeshift hospital, and the Spanish Red Cross set up a help centre offering assistance to emergency services and people seeking information. Members of Spain’s Civil Guard and civil defence worked at the site throughout the night.

Puente said early on Monday that the cause of the crash was unknown.

According to Puente, the rear section of the first train derailed and crashed into the front of the other train, knocking its first two carriages off the track and down a 4-metre (13ft) slope.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez expressed his condolences to the victims’ families.

Spain has the largest rail network in Europe for trains travelling at more than 250 kilometres per hour (155 miles per hour), with more than 3,100km (1,900 miles) of track, according to the European Union.

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The network is a popular, competitively priced and safe mode of transport. Renfe said more than 25 million passengers took one of its high-speed trains in 2024.