At least 30 people died early on Wednesday, 28 October, when an AVE high-speed train ran into a stopped Iryo train near Urda station in Toledo province, the Castilla-La Mancha regional government said. Authorities fear the death toll will rise.

More than 540 people were on the two trains.

Both were passenger trains: Renfe's AVE 2080 and Iryo 6076. Both were running on the line between Madrid and Seville. The 112 emergency service said first reports showed the AVE train hit the Iryo train, which had stopped on the track.

After the impact, two Iryo carriages and one AVE carriage fell down the embankment.

Adif, which runs the rail lines, said the crash happened at kilometre 118, between Mora, Orgaz and Urda. Los Yébenes, also in Toledo province, has been named as another place linked to the crash.

Government sources believe human error caused the crash. They say it could prove worse than the Adamuz disaster. The transport ministry and Adif said the likely cause was a mistake by an Adif operator during a fault in the main signalling system. The government points to human error in the control centre at Atocha station in Madrid.

Trains between Madrid and Andalusia have stopped. The rail operator halted services along the whole southern corridor and asked passengers not to go to stations.

Córdoba, Spain's third-largest rail hub, is feeling the effects of the crash. Dozens of passengers are stuck there, waiting to find out how to continue their journey.

The government sent the Military Emergencies Unit to the scene to help rescuers. Health minister Mónica García said all emergency services were working at the site and nearby hospitals had been told to expect injured people.

García said many hospitals in the Madrid region had free intensive care beds and were ready to treat patients with multiple injuries. She said she had spoken to some of the hospitals, and they were already freeing up beds and staff. She said the Madrid region and Castilla-La Mancha would work closely together.

Renfe opened a helpline for passengers' relatives on 900 10 10 20. Information centres for families are open at Atocha station in Madrid and in Seville.

At the AVE station in Córdoba, rail staff set aside a room for passengers' relatives, and the first people have already arrived. The Red Cross, the National Police and 112 staff are there.

One passenger described what happened as terrible and indescribable.

King Felipe VI offered condolences to the families of the dead and spoke to Castilla-La Mancha president Emiliano García-Page. "The circumstances are being analysed, but the first thing is to express our sorrow at this terrible tragedy, and to give the families our condolences, our grief, our support, our love," the king said. He sent words of support and encouragement to the emergency services.

Prime minister Pedro Sánchez said he was devastated. The government and the parties cancelled their plans for the day.

The government delegation in Extremadura also cancelled all its engagements for Wednesday. Extremadura regional leader María Guardiola wrote on social media that she was devastated. She has offered help to García-Page and voiced support for the emergency services and the victims.

The Andalusian parliament cancelled its sessions on Wednesday and Thursday, 28 and 29 October, including the plenary session. MPs will hold a minute's silence for the victims at 12:00 local time on Wednesday in front of the main facade of the building.

The Council of Spokespersons took the decision unanimously on a proposal from parliament speaker Ana Mestre. She offered condolences to the families and friends of the dead. Mestre said parliament shared the pain Andalusia is already feeling and must rise to the occasion by stopping its work.

"Sadly, many of those injured and killed in this crash may be Andalusians," Mestre also said.

The Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces called a minute's silence at 20:00 local time on Wednesday in front of the entrances to all town halls in Spain. It made the call on social media.

The Federation of Municipalities and Provinces of Extremadura also joined the minute's silence.