With closed applause after the entry of the Kings into the Carolina Marín Sports Palace in Huelva, the diocesan funeral for the victims of the Adamuz railway accident in which 45 people died, 28 of them, more than half, from the province of Huelva. and survivors and around 4,000 neighbors who wanted to accompany them, took part in a ceremony that was preceded by some controversy due to the absence of the President of the Government, after the State funeral that had been scheduled for this Saturday had been cancelled.
That containment was only broken after the end of the mass, when Liliana Sáenz, daughter of Natividad de la Torre, one of those who died in the accident, went up to the presbytery to pay tribute to the 45 victims. “What we lost was not just a number, they were cars full of hope. They are not only the 45 on the train, they were our fathers, mothers, brothers, children or grandchildren, they were the joy of our awakenings and the refuge of our sorrows,” he said with a voice choked with emotion.
And he has also referred to the efforts of the relatives: “We are the 45 families who will fight to know the truth. Only the truth will help us heal this wound that will never close. We will know the truth, we will fight so that there is never another train, but we will do it from serenity, from relief.”
Santiago Gómez Sierra, who officiated the ceremony, has also referred to the solidarity of the people of Adamuz, who helped those traveling on the damaged trains, and the rest of the emergency teams, health workers, security forces, volunteers who assisted the injured and gave support to the families when they were waiting for news of their missing relatives. After her intervention, accompanied by her brother Fidel, the 4,350 present in the auditorium – according to what was reported by the diocese of Huelva – broke out in loud applause that was repeated when the Kings approached to speak with the rest of the relatives and survivors.
of the Spanish Episcopal Conference, Luis Javier Argüello, the bishop emeritus of Huelva, José Vilaplana Blasco, and the bishop of Córdoba, Jesús Fernández, who have been accompanied by a hundred priests, including that of Adamuz. The purple of their chasubles contrasted with the solid black of the numerous authorities who attended the event, among them the first vice president of the Government, María Jesús Montero, the Minister of Agriculture, Luis Planas, and the Minister of Territorial Policy, Ángel Víctor Torres, representing the central Executive; the leader of the opposition, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, the president of the Junta de Andalucía, Juan Manuel Moreno and seven of his advisors, the presidents of the Provincial Councils of Huelva and Córdoba or the mayors of Adamuz and the rest of the Huelva municipalities where 28 of the 45 victims of the railway tragedy resided -Huelva, Aljaraque, Punta Umbría, Gibraleón, Lepe, Bollullos, Isla Cristina and La Palma del Condado-.
The relatives of the accident victims and the survivors sat on the red-covered center court. 336 of them were scheduled to attend, but in the rows at the back, the rows of white chairs showed what many of them had expressed in recent days: their doubts, still convalescing, about having enough spirit or physical strength to be able to attend the event. Of the 126 injured people who were treated in Andalusian hospitals, 18 are still admitted, four of them in the ICU.
Among those who have approached the pavilion, some are still wearing a neck brace and others have arrived helped by a crutch. Natividad de la Torre’s grandchildren, who were with her and who survived the derailment, were in the front row in wheelchairs with their feet in slings; Luis Carlos, his other son, still has a bandage on his forehead. The Bishop of Huelva addressed all of them in his homily.
Gómez Sierra has tried to console those who 15 days ago lost their loved ones in a sudden, abrupt way; and still incomprehensible to them. “They are the tears of those who have lost their loved ones; the feeling of many Christian communities and of Spanish society itself, which does not find easy explanations or quick answers.”
The Bishop of Huelva has drawn attention to the mourning that still awaits them and that will remain latent “when the lights go out or the news of this tragic event is silenced” and has demanded “commitment to society and also to those who have public responsibilities.” As Liliana would do later, she has also asked for transparency: “It is necessary to clarify the truth of what happened and act with justice, so that their sacrifice is not forgotten and so that, to the extent possible, similar tragedies are avoided in the future.”
The most solemn moment, when the bishop of Huelva listed the Huelva victims of the accident, has also been the most controversial because, as some of the relatives present have warned, not all of the deceased have been named. From the altar and before giving the Eucharist to the families, forgiveness was asked.
This diocesan ceremony has not managed to isolate itself from the political confrontation, despite the restraint shown by the Moreno Government. In recent days, the tone has been rising. First it was the president of the Community of Madrid, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, who asked – it was also held this Thursday afternoon in the La Almudena cathedral – the archbishopric of Madrid to organize a religious funeral in the Almudena cathedral as an alternative event and prior to the State funeral that the Government and the Junta had called for January 31. The Madrid leader thus intended to capitalize on the discomfort of some Christian circles with a tribute that was not Catholic.
Later, when this State tribute was called off due to the impossibility of many victims being transported to be present, it was Juan Bravo, national deputy secretary of the PP and Andalusian, who expressly requested that no member of the Government attend the funeral as he considered it “a provocation for the victims.”
The mayor of Punta Umbría, José Carlos Hernández (PP), a municipality hit hard by the tragedy, has defended that the tribute formula “is the appropriate one” and that he missed, “in his humble opinion”, the presence of the Chief Executive, who is scheduled to participate in the State funeral, just as happened with the victims of the dana. Regarding the religious nature of the tribute, Liliana had spoken at the beginning of her intervention: “The only funeral we want in our lives is that of the closeness of God. Huelva is a Marian land, Andalusia is a believing town.”
After the funeral mass, while the Kings stopped to talk and console the relatives, the mayor of Huelva, Pilar Miranda, and Moreno also came to speak with some of the victims’ relatives.
