A COLLISION between a train and a vehicle in Giza left seven people dead and dozens injured. Three were listed in critical condition. The 31 January accident happened in Giza's Al-Ayyat district, some 70 km south of Cairo. The train, which was coming from Upper Egypt, slammed into the vehicle at a railway crossing. The accident happened in foggy weather, with poor visibility. The crossing, which is operated manually, was open as the train was passing. Egypt's railway system is operated manually, with watchmen responsible for the opening and closing of crossings, an unsafe and error-prone practice that has caused dozens of deadly accidents over the years. On 20 February 2002, a train caught fire in Al-Ayyat, killing at least 380 people, the worst railway disaster in Egypt's history. In 2009, two train crashes in Al-Ayyat killed at least 50 people. Giza Governor Mohamed Kamal Al-Dali, who visited the site of Sunday's accident, said a technical committee will determine the reason behind the deadly incident. Al-Dali said families of those who died will receive LE5,000 each and the injured LE2,000. Cabinet spokesman Hossam Qawish said the prime minister has asked Social Solidarity Minister Ghada Wali to provide LE10,000 in compensation for the families of those who were killed and LE2,000 for the injured.
