Symbolic imageTwo passenger trains collide south of Cairo, seven dead
A Giza-Fayoum train rammed another passenger train near al-Ayyat on Sunday. Seven people died and more than 110 were injured.
The crash happened on Sunday, 8 November, in al-Ayyat district, Giza province. Egypt's railway authority said the train from Giza to Fayoum hit the back of a train heading from Cairo to Aswan, and the transport ministry said an inspection indicated the Aswan train had been standing on the same track. Early reports put the toll at four dead and 88 injured. The health ministry later gave seven dead and 112 injured, while Al Jazeera and The Guardian cite at least 125 injured. Witness Abdel Wahed Mohamed said six carriages overturned.
Investigation ordered
President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ordered an urgent investigation and said anyone found negligent should be held accountable. Egypt's public prosecutor's office is examining the technical reasons for the crash.
Rescue and clearance
Villagers, first responders and railway workers pulled trapped passengers from the carriages. The railway authority sent cranes to clear the wreckage, and The Guardian reports that more than 70 of the injured were discharged after treatment.
A record of rail accidents
Deadly rail accidents are common in Egypt despite billions spent on modernisation, according to Al Jazeera and the Jerusalem Post. Several crashes in the same area killed dozens in 2009.