The designer Daniela Arteaga Martínez (28) is, so far, the only Cuban who appears among the more than 150 injured in the accident railway accident that occurred this Sunday in Adamuz, in the south of Spain, and left 40 dead.
The young woman, graduated from the Higher Institute of Design and now awarded a scholarship by the International University of Andalusia (UNIA) to pursue a master’s degree in Communication and Audiovisual Education, remains admitted to the Reina Sofía hospital in Córdoba, but her condition is stable and her life is not in danger, she told OnCuba a close friend.
“She was traveling on the train that covered the Madrid-Huelva route and suffered fractures in several ribs and bruises on her head,” detailed the same source, although she assures that at this time new medical examinations are pending.
He also noted that the family learned of his involvement in the accident after an acquaintance recognized his face among those rescued; images that were broadcast on television.
In this way it was possible to establish contact with his relatives in Cuba. Later, the identity was confirmed by the relatives themselves.
In
Grateful to God, DANIELA ARTEAGA MARTÍNEZ; He is out of danger. We thank you, you have been a great help to us. We wish you all the good that God can give; and the best thing is also JESUS CHRIST!!
— Ana Caridad Martínez Herrera (@martinez_a71463) January 19, 2026
According to a report of ABC, the director of the Ibero-American Headquarters of the Rábida of the UNIA, María de la O Barroso, He said that, on Sunday night, after hearing the news, he was seeking information at the Huelva station, but it was not until Monday morning that they were able to confirm Daniela’s situation.
The young Cuban said, “I was ‘super happy’ to have been awarded a scholarship to come to Huelva and have obtained a visa to enter Spain.”
Daniela had arrived that same day at the Barajas Adolfo Suárez airport in Madrid and had to continue her journey to her final destination, Huelva, on the damaged train.
“Today has been a very sad day for Huelva and for our master’s degree. The Adamuz train accident has filled all of Spain and especially our province with sadness,” wrote Ignacio Aguaded, director of the master’s degree, in an email message addressed to teachers and students to whom OnCuba had access.
“Our student Daniela Arteaga, who arrived yesterday in our land from her native Cuba, with the great hope of beginning the academic project of her life, found herself trapped in a mass of iron. Now, she continues fighting for her life in a hospital in Córdoba,” he added.
The professor assured this Monday that Arteaga was visited by the rector of the UNIA and vice-rectors and directors. “Hopefully we will have her soon in Huelva, here she will be cared for like her family.”
From Cuba, President Miguel Díaz-Canel sent “heartfelt condolences to the Government and people of Spainfor the victims and injuries caused by the derailment of two trains. “All our solidarity in this sad moment.”
The accident, which occurred in Adamuz, province of Córdoba, was caused by the derailment of an Iryo company train and its subsequent collision with another train from the public company Renfe, which was traveling in the opposite direction on an adjacent track.
The Iryo train, which had left Malaga at 6:40 p.m. (local time) bound for the Puerta de Atocha station in Madrid and with 317 people on board, derailed its last three cars at 7:39 p.m. in Adamuz, in the south of the country, in the community of Andalusia.
According to reports, the cars invaded the parallel track on which a Renfe Alvia train was traveling at that time bound for Huelva, which also derailed after the impact.
The Iryo cars collided with the first two Alvia cars, which were thrown and fell down an embankment. The driver was killed.
Although the authorities have warned that it could increase, the death toll so far amounts to 40. 41 people are reported hospitalized, 12 of them in intensive care and reported in serious condition, according to The Country.
