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Deaths as truck collides with tourist bus in southern Egypt

At least 10 people, including four French and a Belgian, were killed and 14 others injured in the accident, the cause of which was not immediately clear

AP

The bus was travelling to the Temple of Esna on the west bank of the Nile River, some 55 kilometres south of the ancient city of Luxor.

A tourist bus has collided with a truck on a highway in southern Egypt and burst into flames, killing at least 10 people, including four French and a Belgian, authorities said.

The crash happened on Wednesday on a highway about 43 kilometres south of the city of Aswan, provincial authorities said in a statement. The bus was travelling to the Temple of Esna on the west bank of the Nile River, some 55 kilometres south of the ancient city of Luxor.

Along with the foreign tourists, five Egyptians were killed in the crash. At least 14 others were injured, including eight from France and six from Belgium, they said. The cause of the crash was not immediately clear.

Many bodies were charred, and the injured suffered from burns, bruises and fractures, according to a health official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to talk to the media.

President Abdel Fattah el Sisi posted on Twitter that he was closely following the crash and had instructed the government to “provide all medical and treatment care for the victims of the tragic accident.”

Aswan Provincial Governor Ashraf Attia said the injured were in stable condition.

Footage that circulated online showed a tourist bus in flames with people trying to put out the fire. “A guest is dying inside,” one person was heard screaming.

The bus in the video bore the logo of state-owned Misr Travel. The Cairo-based agency did not respond to a request for comment.

Poor road safety record

Wednesday’s accident came five days after a bus crashed on a highway near the Red Sea, killing three people, including two Polish tourists.

Deadly traffic accidents claim thousands of lives every year in Egypt, which has a poor transportation safety record.

The crashes and collisions are mostly caused by speeding, bad roads or poor enforcement of traffic laws.

Egypt’s official statistics agency says there were around 10,000 road accidents in 2019, the most recent year for which statistics are available, leaving over 3,480 dead.

In 2018, there were 8,480 car accidents, causing over 3,080 deaths.

SOURCE: AP