CAIRO: Egypt's road accidents in 2009 reached an estimated 23,000, an 8.9 percent increase from the previous year, according to a report by the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS). Highway accidents constituted the majority — 5,014 — a 22 percent increase from 2008, added the report which was released last week. According to the statistics, 18 people were killed every day and four injured every hour due to these accidents in 2009. This is considered a decrease in traffic deaths, as the number of road-accident-related deaths in 2009 was 6,486, precisely 17.77 deaths a day, in contrast to 18.09 deaths in 2008. According to CAPMAS, 68 percent of the accidents were due to human error, while 21 percent were a result of tire explosions and two percent to car dysfunctions. The lack of well-equipped hospitals, emergency rooms and ambulances has been a rising concern among Egyptians, especially on and close to highways and holiday destinations. However, there has been an increase in the number of clinics on highways as they have now reached 1,035, in addition to 2,713 ambulances available on highways across the country. Meanwhile, the number of train-related accidents in Egypt increased by 22 percent, according to the report, with 1,577 rail accidents in 2009. In these accidents a total of 62 people were killed and 155 injured. Minister of Transportation Mohamed Lotfy Mansour resigned from his post in 2009 after he took full responsibility for the Al-Ayyat train crash which took place on Oct. 24, claiming 18 lives and injuring 36 people.
