TWO commuter trains have collided in a Nile Delta town north of Cairo, killing up to 80 people and injuring twice that number. Police said the two trains were heading south towards Cairo yesterday, when one failed to obey a stop signal outside Qalyoub train station, about 20 kilometres north of Cairo, and rammed into the rear of the train in front.An official at the scene said an investigation into the cause had already begun. The driver of one train, coming from the town of Mansoura, was killed and the locomotive overturned and caught fire, police said. "We looked and saw the other train coming from behind, screeching," said Khalil Sheik Khalil, who was nearby. "We kept saying: 'Driver, driver, a train is coming.' So the [train] driver moved up 15 metres, and while he was moving, the two trains impacted."
| “The carriages were crushed together like an accordion...” |
About 1000 bystanders and relatives of travellers anxious for news gathered near the accident site. Officials using loudhailers called on people to give blood and a queue formed in response. "Egyptian authorities ... have advised that to the best of their knowledge there were no foreigners on board either train,'' a spokesman said. "Nor were there any reports of any foreigners injured or killed in the crash.''