At least seven people have been killed and 112 injured when two passenger trains collided in Egypt’s Giza governorate, south of the capital Cairo.
Egyptian authorities said a train moving from Giza to Fayoum collided with the back of a passenger train travelling from Cairo to the southern city of Aswan on Sunday, Nov. 8, in the Al-Ayyat area.
The collision derailed several carriages and passengers were trapped in the wreckage, leading to an emergency rescue operation.
Egypt’s Health Ministry said 112 people were injured while the Public Prosecution Office said seven individuals were killed. A train conductor was among the dead.
Emergency services mobilised 72 ambulances to take casualties to nearby hospitals for medical assistance. Rescue teams and heavy equipment were deployed to the location to clean the tracks and remove the damaged cars.
President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi expressed worry about the event and ordered the concerned bodies to provide necessary medical treatment for the injured passengers.
He also ordered a quick investigation into the circumstances of the crash, adding that everyone found guilty of wrongdoing should be brought to justice.
The Public Prosecution Office has opened investigations to find out the reasons behind the disaster, while the Egyptian Railway Authority is trying to clear the wreckage and return to normal train services.
The tragedy has once again raised concerns about railway safety in Egypt, where the outdated rail network has been the scene of multiple catastrophic incidents over the years, even as the government has invested in modernising transport infrastructure.
In 2002, more than 370 people were murdered in one of the country’s deadliest rail tragedies when a fire swept through a packed passenger train going from Cairo to Luxor.
Rescue, recovery and investigation activities continue by authorities after Sunday’s crash.
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