The scene was terrifying': how the quad hero of Adamuz' led train crash victims to safety

"Gonzalo Sanchez, 43, was at home in the small town of Adamuz when the town's Whatsapp group alerted to reports of a train that had derailed nearby. Sanchez sprang into action, grabbing a few tools and heading to the site in his car. He was among the first to arrive at the scene. It's something you hope to never come across in your life, he told the broadcaster Cadena Ser."

"He began doing what he could to help, soon learning from passengers that a second train had been involved in the collision. It was pitch black, and you couldn't see a thing. Nobody had noticed there were more train cars and people further down, he told El Pais. What we know so far about high-speed train crash in Spain Officials later said a high-speed train carrying about 300 Madrid-bound passengers had derailed, sending it into the path of an oncoming train carrying about 200 passengers."

"Alongside rescue workers, Sanchez raced to the site of the second train, about 1km away, taking in the scenes of twisted metal, scattered debris and victims pleading for help. The scene on either side was indescribable, terrible, terrifying, he said. Complicating matters was the rugged terrain. The collision had taken place in a remote area where the railway tracks were hemmed in by ridges that rose up on either side. Sanchez realised the all-terrain vehicle he had at home could be of use."

Gonzalo Sanchez, 43, rushed from his home in Adamuz to the scene after the town's Whatsapp group alerted residents to a nearby derailed train. He arrived among the first and helped passengers, learning that a second train had collided in darkness. Officials said a high-speed Madrid-bound train carrying about 300 passengers derailed into the path of an oncoming train with about 200 passengers, killing at least 41 and injuring dozens. Sanchez raced to a second site about 1km away, witnessed twisted metal and pleading victims, and returned with his quad bike to transport rescuers and wounded across the rugged, remote terrain.

Read at www.theguardian.com