People gather to inspect damaged train cars after two passenger trains collided near Tahta in Egypt
Credit: Mahmoud Maqboul/DPA/Cover Images
Egyptian president Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi vowed to punish those responsible for a train crash on Friday that killed at least 32 people and injured over 100, in the latest of several fatal rail accidents to befall the country.
The Egyptian railway authority said the crash, which left passengers trapped under wreckage, was caused by "unknown individuals" pulling the emergency brakes.
Responding to the crash, which also reportedly killed one of the drivers, Mr Sisi warned that whoever was responsible would face consequences.
“Anyone who caused this painful accident through negligence or corruption, or anything similar, must receive a deterrent punishment without exception or delay,” he said in a statement on Twitter.
Train crash Tahta, Egypt
It is understood that both trains were travelling in the same direction and the sudden braking caused the second train to crash into the first from behind, though a railway spokesman said the investigation was ongoing.
"The trains collided while going at not very high speeds, which led to the destruction of two carriages and a third to overturn," a security source told Reuters news agency.
Video footage showed some victims that appeared to be unconscious, while others could be seen bleeding. Bystanders carried bodies and laid them out on the ground near the crash site, which is close to the Nile-side town of Tahta, about 230 miles south of Cairo.
Egyptian prime minister Mostafa Madbouly is now at the scene of the accident, the latest in several crashes in Egypt which have caused hundreds of deaths in recent years.
One of the deadliest occurred in 2002 when 373 people died as a fire ripped through a crowded train south of Cairo.
A blanket covers a victim
Credit: Shutterstock
Bystanders carried bodies and laid them out
Credit: Mahmoud Maqboul/Cover Images
In March last year, at least 13 people were injured when two passenger trains collided in Cairo, triggering a brief suspension of rail services nationwide.
In February 2019, a train derailed and caught fire at Cairo’s main railway station killing more than 20 people and prompting the transport minister to resign.
The accident led to scattered protests, which are unusual in Egypt following a military coup and ensuing crackdown on free speech by President el-Sisi.
Around 70 Egyptians were arrested in Cairo, Giza, Alexandria and Beheira following the demonstrations,
And in 2018, a passenger train derailed near the southern city of Aswan, injuring at least six people and prompting authorities to sack the chief of the country’s railways.
In that same year, Mr Sisi said the government lacked about 250 billion Egyptian pounds, or £10bn, to reform the dilapidated rail system.
Mr Sisi spoke just a day after another passenger train collided with a cargo train, killing at least 12 people, including a child.
Egyptians frequently complain about the country's crumbling public transport
Credit: REUTERS
Egyptians frequently complain about the country’s crumbling public transport, where railway lines are poorly maintained. More than 1.4 million passengers are thought to travel by rail every day.
Dr Mohamad Elmasry, an analyst of Egyptian affairs at Doha University, said Mr Sisi should take more responsibility for the train crashes, in an article for Al Jazeera in 2019.
“It is true that Egypt’s transport infrastructure was crumbling long before Sisi took power, and it is also true that any Egyptian government with meagre means would struggle to quickly modernise [infrastructure,]" he wrote.
"But it is also true that in his five years as president, el-Sisi has been badly mismanaging the economy, squandering money on infrastructure schemes of dubious value.”
The incident came as Egypt was wrestling with another major transport challenge: a giant container ship blocking the Suez Canal and causing huge traffic jams at either end.
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