
Two trains crashed south of the Spanish capital Madrid on Wednesday morning, on the high-speed line to Seville.
At least 69 people were killed and dozens injured in the collision, when a state-operated Renfe high-speed train smashed into the back of a stationary train operated by the Iryo company near the town of Urda.
It is one of the worst rail disasters in Europe's modern history, and Spain's worst crash since 2013. Three days of national mourning have been declared in the country.
Spanish Transport Minister Óscar Puente said a computer failure at about 08:30 on the Wednesday morning led to the initial halt of six moving trains, including the two trains that subsequently collided.
"In the event of a system failure, the control centre takes over," he said, adding it was the control centre that decided to allow the trains to move again, without any speed restrictions.
That decision, Puente said, was made "under inexplicable circumstances". It resulted in the Renfe train crashing into the Iryo train, which was stationary on the tracks about 25km (15 miles) ahead.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cm8xz7pkd0jjo
img: ID 22458504 © Pedro2009 | Dreamstime.com
Dozens of supermarkets across seven European countries have been hit by a cyber-attack affecting their refrigerators and freezers.
Around 40 Delhaize supermarkets in Belgium and Luxembourg were affected, while a smaller number of shops were hit in Sweden, Ireland, the Netherlands, Estonia and Finland.
Sabcobel, a Belgian company that manufactures some of the affected refrigerators, said the units' evaporators were switched to defrost mode, causing them to warm up, in what is believed to be the same method used in last month's incident that hit hundreds of French supermarkets.
Millions of euros worth of food had to be thrown away in October, local media reported at the time.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cq1kd1nee80eo
img: D 44878620 | Shop Freezer © Adisa | Dreamstime.com
Ukraine and Russia have both said air alert apps were hacked after fake messages warning of attacks, including nuclear, were sent to users.
Ukraine's widely used app sent red-level air raid warnings across the country, with additional warnings of radiation, chemical attacks, and street fighting sent to some residents in areas including Kyiv.
A few hours later, Russian authorities said a similar app was hacked after fake alerts, some of which contained foul language, were triggered.
It was unclear who was behind the cyberattacks or whether the two incidents were connected.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c51kdy1ew7zvo
img: AI generated Midjourney.com
A woman who is legally settled in the UK was left stranded at a Spanish airport after the Home Office’s post-Brexit visa system mixed her up with her twin sister.
Nidia Webb fell foul of what she was told was a “known issue” with the eVisa, which was brought in as part of the government’s drive to digitise the UK’s immigration system but has faced problems that have caused concern for thousands of people.
Politico reported that Webb, who has lived in the UK for eight years, was told at the departure gate she would not be able to board her flight home. “My digital settled status had become linked to my identical twin sister’s details rather than my own, meaning my status could not be properly matched to my identity,” she said.
img: ID 88942278 | Airport Border Check © 1000words | Dreamstime.com
A terrifying case of digital stalking has exposed the dark side of connected vehicle technology. Australian businessman Enrico Pucci was convicted of 30 domestic violence offences after using the Tesla car app to remotely track and control his ex-partner’s Tesla.
The victim endured bizarre and frightening harassment when her vehicle's locks, climate settings, speed profiles, and alarms were secretly manipulated. Pucci taunted her during an in-person confrontation, warning, "I am in your car".
Pucci was convicted of 30 domestic violence related charges against Stacey, including using the Tesla car app to harass her.
img: Photo 93770553 © Helgidinson | Dreamstime.com
- Japanese utility execs resign over falsified quake safety data for 2 nuclear reactors
- Army identifies systemic failures behind DC midair collision and calls for safety fixes
- Failed engine component and an ambiguous warning caused fatal Royal Navy Merlin helicopter ditching
- More flight cancellations as fallout from air traffic control glitch continues