Egypt: Train collision kills 36, injures dozens ⁰

A train collision near Egypt’s coastal city of Alexandria has killed 36 people and injured 123 others, Egyptian officials say. The two trains collided head on –one was coming from the capital of Cairo, to the south of Alexandria, and the other was coming from the city of Port Said, located on the northern tip of the Suez Canal.

The head of the ambulance services in the Alexandria’s western sector, Dr. Mohamed Abu Homs, said the collision took place in the district of Khorshid, southeast of the city.

Abu Homs said he fears the death toll and the number of injured could rise further. Egypt’s railway system has a poor safety record, mostly blamed on decades of badly maintained equipment and poor management. Footage from the scene broadcast on state television showed dozens of people crowding around the damaged train cars, with dead bodies strewn on the ground.

State television, citing transport ministry officials, reported that the crash was probably caused by a malfunction in one of the trains that brought it to a halt on the rails. It was the deadliest train accident in the North African country since a November 2013 collision between a train and a bus killed 27 people south of Cairo.

(Source: Agencies)