Spain train death toll rises to 40

Mystery on cause of crash as human error & speed ruled out

- BY GILES SHELDRICK

AT least 40 people have died in a Spanish train crash that has left investigators puzzled.

Human error and speed have been ruled out as causes after a Madrid-bound service derailed and crossed to the opposite tracks, colliding with an oncoming train on Sunday night.

Emergency services treated 122 people, with 43, including four children, still in hospital.

Of those, 12 adults and one child remain in intensive care.

Fire service head Francisco Carmona, said: "We have even had to remove a dead person to be able to reach someone alive. It is hard, tricky work."

The death toll, thought to include one of the drivers, is almost certain to rise.