Egypt: nearly 100 injured in a new train accident

Sylvie Claire / April 18, 2021

According to a statement from the ministry, 97 citizens were injured in a train accident at Toukh, a small agricultural town about 40 km north of Cairo. Eight cars of the train, which was going from Cairo to Mansoura, 130 km away, derailed, a security source told AFP.

More than 55 ambulances were dispatched to treat the injured, according to the Ministry of Health. Investigators were sent to the scene to establish the cause of the accident. According to the security source, the train driver and other railway officials have been detained for questioning.

Railway accidents in Egypt are usually attributed to infrastructure and maintenance problems. On March 26, at least 20 people died and nearly 200 were injured in a train accident near the southern city of Sohag. The prosecutor general's office said the train driver and his assistant were not at their posts at the time of the accident, which both men disputed. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi has promised sanctions against those responsible for the train tragedies that have plunged the country into mourning in recent years.

In early April, the African Development Bank (AfDB) announced a loan of 145 million euros to Egypt to improve its railway infrastructure