A prepare crash in Egypt killed 4 individuals and injured greater than 20, officers stated Wednesday in regards to the newest in a sequence of lethal accidents blamed on ageing infrastructure and mismanagement.
The prepare overshot the station and bumped into the buffers on the finish of the observe after passing by way of a cease sign, within the Nile Delta metropolis of Qalyub north of Cairo, the National Railways Authority stated.
“That led to the derailment of the locomotive and the first carriage,” it added in an announcement.
Pictures from the scene confirmed emergency crews in a single day utilizing a crane to raise the derailed coach that gave the impression to be partially crumpled.
Egypt’s well being ministry later gave the ultimate toll of 4 killed and 23 injured, doubling the variety of deaths that had been introduced in a single day.
Families of these killed within the newest prepare tragedy will obtain compensation value 100,000 Egyptian kilos (round $3,000), stated the solidarity ministry.
An identical quantity will go to these severely injured, an announcement stated.
President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi has vowed to carry to account these accountable for recurrent lethal rail accidents in Egypt, the Arab world’s most populous nation.
In April 2021, Transport Minister Kamel el-Wazir fired the rail authority’s head following an uproar over the mismanagement of dilapidated prepare traces.
The sacking got here after two prepare accidents inside lower than a month that killed greater than 40 individuals.
Egypt’s worst railway tragedy occurred in 2002 when a fireplace ripped by way of a prepare killing greater than 370 individuals simply exterior Cairo.
Egypt’s 105 million individuals rely largely on rail transport, however the community, though one of many largest on the African continent, is riddled with issues.
After the 2021 tragedies, the transport minister acknowledged that “the human element” is usually responsible for the lethal accidents.
Wazir vowed on the time that an automatic community can be arrange by 2024 – a part of marquee initiatives promised by Sisi’s administration.
The initiatives additionally embrace the development of a brand new high-speed community to interchange current traces for which contracts have been awarded.
Egypt’s roads additionally see frequent lethal accidents which are sometimes blamed on poor upkeep and guidelines flouted by drivers.
In 2021, round 7,000 individuals have been killed on Egyptian roads, in line with official figures.
Source: www.dailysabah.com
