Spanish Transport Minister Óscar Puente has called the theft of a copper signaling cable on the railway “sabotage,” which led to the delay of high-speed connections between Madrid and Seville during the busy holiday weekend. This was reported by The Guardian, writes UNN.
Details
Government sources said that the problems on the railway line between the capital and the southern region of Andalusia on Sunday evening were caused by the theft of a copper cable from five different locations in the Toledo area, south of Madrid.
As the minister explained, although the cable that was the target of the crime had little monetary value – its total cost is about 300 euros – it was important for the safe operation of the railway lines, as it allows the system to know where the trains are.
If these safety cables are destroyed, the line loses connection. This is the best solution if you want to put the entire line out of operation in one fell swoop. Whoever did it knew what he was doing, because there were no cameras, and the financial benefit is absolutely insignificant compared to the great damage. Now we will have to look for ways to diversify signaling channels on the railway in order to avoid similar acts of sabotage in the future
– said the minister.
A few hours after the incident, the country’s state railway operator Renfe and railway infrastructure company Adif rushed to restore service between Madrid and Seville.
But according to the Ministry of Transport, more than 10,000 passengers were affected by the theft.
Recall
The railway incident in Spain occurred just a week after a large-scale blackout on the Iberian Peninsula on April 28, from which the country is still recovering.