Black box confirms excess speed caused Spanish train crash

Information from the black box of the train that crashed at the town of O Porrino on Friday, claiming four lives, has revealed the accident was caused by an excess of speed, investigators have confirmed.

Although the black box did not record conversations which took place in the cabin of the train, it did record its speed throughout its journey, the signals it passed through, and the distances involved.

The investigation into the black box contents on Tuesday showed that when the accident happened, the train, operated by Portuguese railway company Combois, on the route between Vigo and Porto was travelling at 118 km per hour on a stretch of track which had a maximum speed limit of 30 km per hour.

This almost certainly caused it to jump the rails before it crashed into the concrete base of a lighting tower outside the O Porrino station just 12 km into its journey.

The impact killed the train driver, a trainee driver, and a guard, as well as an American tourist, while injuring around 50, nine of whom are still in hospital in Vigo. Endit