Egypt Rail Crash Kills at Least 26

A freight train carrying construction materials hit three vehicles including a minibus that was crossing the tracks, killing 26 people and injuring 28. The accident happened in Dahshur, 25 miles south of Cairo.

The train was heading from the southern city of Beni Suef. The crossing gates of the level crossing were closed at the time. The train driver was taken by surprise when he saw people and vehicles still crossing the tracks. Some reports suggest that the minibus was “charging” the tracks to cross ahead of the train when the impact happened.

Most of the dead were of the same family, returning from a wedding party in Cairo to their home in the southern city of Fayyou.

The head of Egypt’s railway company Hussein Zakaria was dismayed, saying “What could the guards have done? Stand in front of the bus?” 28 people were injured with broken and lost limbs and other crash injuries.

Egypt has a poor safety record on road and rail, which have suffered from under investment over recent years. In November 2011, 51 children travelling to school in Assiut were killed when a train hit a bus.