Egypt train derailment injures 55 people

July 14, 2018 | 10:08

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Fifty-five people were injured on Friday (Jul 13) by the derailment of three coaches of a train south of Cairo, Egypt's health ministry said.

egypt train derailment injures 55 people

Egyptians use their phones to take pictures of the scene of a railway accident as a a train derailed near Badrasheen, a town some 20 kilometres (12 miles) from the Egyptian capital Cairo on Jul 13, 2018 leaving dozens injured. (Photo: AFP/Stringer)

"Fifty-five injured have been transferred to emergency care but the accident did not kill anyone", deputy health minister Ahmed Mohi al-Qassed told AFP.

The public prosecutor's office has opened an investigation to determine the cause of the partial derailment in the Badrashin region, 20 kilometres (12 miles) south of Egypt's capital.

Serious road and rail accidents are frequent in Egypt, due to chaotic traffic, old vehicles and poorly maintained transport networks.

More than 40 people were killed in an August 2017 collision between two trains near Alexandria, in northern Egypt.

This train accident was the worst since a 2012 collision between a school bus and train killed 47 at a level crossing in Assiut province.

The deadliest train accident in Egypt's history came in 2002 when a train fire killed 373 people 40 kilometres south of Cairo.

AFP

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