CAIRO — A train slammed into a barrier at Cairo’s main railway station and exploded on Wednesday, sparking a major fire that killed at least 25 people and injured 47.
Hours later, Transportation Minister Hisham Arafat resigned, according to a cabinet statement.
Egypt’s National Railway Authority said in a statement that the blaze erupted after the train struck a concrete barrier at Ramses Station, in central Cairo. The train’s fuel tank apparently exploded, creating a huge ball of flames that engulfed the platforms and nearby buildings.
Images on Egyptian television and social media showed heavy plumes of black smoke rising from the station as ambulances and fire engines arrived.
“Suddenly everything turned orange,” said Hend Ahmad el-Taher, 30, a teacher, who was in a cafeteria waiting for her train to depart when the explosion occurred. “People in flames were running and screaming.”
Egypt’s railway infrastructure has long been neglected, and previous train accidents have been blamed on a lack of investment and poor management of the railway network.
A burned-out train engine rests on tracks at the main train station in Cairo on Feb. 27. (Mohamed Hossam/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock)
In August 2017, 43 people were killed when two passenger trains collided near the northern coastal city of Alexandria. And in 2002, a fire swept through an overcrowded train near Cairo, killing more than 370 people. It was the nation’s deadliest train accident.
On Wednesday, most of those killed were on the platform, waiting for their trains or heading toward the exit.
“I ordered my coffee and was about to pay for it and get back to my train,” Taher recalled. “But God worked His ways and the guy at the cafeteria took too long to get my coffee. In just one second, what happened happened. I could have been out on the platform.
“It was a nightmare,” she added. “Even the people who got out safe were terrified.”
Read more
Egypt’s powerful president is facing unusual dissent over rapidly rising prices
Today’s coverage from Post correspondents around the world
Like Washington Post World on Facebook and stay updated on foreign news
This story was originally published by Washington Post
via USAHint.com
No comments:
Post a Comment