Road Crash Kills 15 People in Egypt's Capital

Arab World

March 26th, 9:07am

Asharq Al-Awsat

Hundreds die and thousands are injured every year in Egyptian road accidents, often caused by reckless driving and poor roads. (File photo: Reuters)

At least 15 people were killed and dozens injured in an accident on Egypt's freeway late Wednesday. A trailer-truck smashed into cars in Cairo few hours after nighttime curfew took effect to curb the spread of the coronavirus, state media reported. Authorities said a string of microbuses, trucks and cars were lined up at a checkpoint on a road from southern Egypt into central Cairo waiting for officers to approve their curfew exemptions. The truck loaded with construction materials plowed into the cluster of vehicles at high speed, the Associated Press reported. In its most aggressive response yet to the coronavirus pandemic, Egypt imposed an 11-hour nightly curfew for its 100 million people. After 7 p.m. public transport shuts down and people are forbidden from entering the streets unless they have an exemption. Officials were still investigating the accident in the country which sees almost 8,000 deaths due to traffic accidents each year. Egypt's roads are poorly maintained and traffic laws rarely enforced.

from Asharq AL-awsat https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/2200421/road-crash-kills-15-people-egypts-capital