Mother-of-two Cambridge scientist, 41, who was travelling to collect an award, is confirmed among 69 killed in Spain train crash
Wrecked carriages thrown down an embankment near Urda, Toledo, after controllers directed a Renfe train to resume at full speed into a stationary Iryo service carrying 147 passengers.Dr Marta Shahbazi, the Cambridge biologist confirmed among the 69 killed, had been travelling to receive an award from the Spanish Society for Developmental Biology when the crash occurred on Wednesday.
Dr Marta Shahbazi, a Spanish-born biologist who led a research group at Cambridge's MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, was seated in the front carriage of the Renfe train when it slammed into the rear of a stationary Iryo service near Urda on Wednesday. Her brother Carlos told reporters 'she lived for science and her kids — that was her whole life.' She leaves behind a husband, Mirco Petruzzelli, and two children aged three and seven.
Shahbazi had been due to receive an award from the Spanish Society for Developmental Biology for her pioneering work on early human embryo development and IVF.
An initial report by rail infrastructure manager Adif found four system failures that day, including a collapse of the LZB safety system designed to prevent two trains sharing the same track.
Spain's prime minister Pedro Sánchez admitted 'trust in high-speed rail has been broken' after a second deadly crash on the same Madrid-Seville route within a year.
