The Egyptian Ministry of Health announced the death of 32 people and the injury of 66 others in a train accident near Sohag on Friday.
A train heading to Cairo from Aswan rear-ended a passenger train that had stopped at Tahta in Sohag, causing three vehicles to derail and injuring a number of passengers, Nashat Fouad, a member of the House of Representatives from the Tahta district in Sohag Governorate, said.
Fouad added, in exclusive statements to CNN Arabia, that ambulances are currently transporting the injured and a number of officials at the site of the accident, including the Director of Security for the Sohag Governorate.
Local media published press releases revealing that Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly ordered the immediate transfer of the injured to hospitals, and providing the required medical service to them.
Madbouly contacted the Ministers of Health and Transport to find out the causes of the collision and demanded a report on the causes of the accident.
In the same context, the Ministry of Health announced that Health Minister Hala Zayed was on the way to Sohag to inspect the health condition of the injured.
Official spokesperson for the ministry Khaled Megahed explained that immediately after the accident, 36 equipped ambulances were dispatched to transport 50 injured people to Sohag General Hospital, Sohag Educational Hospital, Tahta Hospital and Maragha Hospital.
Megahed said that Zayed has formed a crisis and emergency room in Sohag to follow up on the accident’s repercussions, provide any needed medical supplies, and activate medical teams to treat the injured.
Meanwhile, the Egyptian government issued a brief statement announcing the urgent investigation into the accident.
Train accidents have been a common occurence in Egypt, with some resulting in a large number of deaths and injuries.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi has ordered a rebuild of Egypt’s national rail system in which authorities will update the lines, add new lines, and increase overall safety.
The railway renovation is part of a larger ongoing transportation overhaul that includes new high-speed trains, additional metro lines, and road improvement projects.
