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Two trains collide south of Cairo, killing 7 and injuring at least 125, authorities say

Two trains collide south of Cairo, killing 7 and injuring at least 125, authorities say

Two trains collided south of Cairo in Egypt, killing seven people and injuring at least 125 others, authorities said.

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Two trains collided Sunday south of the Egyptian capital of Cairo, killing seven people and injuring at least 125, authorities said.

The Health Ministry said in a statement that more than 70 of the injured were discharged after receiving treatment.

The crash happened in al-Ayyat district in Giza province, about 52 kilometres (32 miles) south of Cairo, when a train travelling to southwestern Fayoum province crashed into the rear of a train heading to the southern province of Aswan, according to Egypt’s Transportation Ministry.

The Chief Prosecutor’s office said late Sunday its investigators had arrived at the site, and an inspection indicated the Giza-Fayyoum train collided with the last car of the Cairo-Aswan train, which was stationary on the same track and travelling in the same direction.

A resident said people living nearby rushed to the scene, pulled out survivors and called ambulances, adding that about 80 injured people were taken to nearby hospitals.

Survivors described passengers being trapped inside one of the cars of the stationary train and struggling after dust was kicked up.

A survivor on the Fayoum train said some passengers appeared dead and others were trying to find their way out, and that nearby cars were “completely mangled,” in an interview included in the report.

President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi said in a social media post that he ordered a prompt investigation into the crash, and emergency teams and cranes were dispatched to clear the wreckage and restore services.

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