A speeding rail car crashed into a barrier at Cairo’s main train station, causing its fuel tank to explode and triggering a huge fire that left at least 25 people dead on Wednesday, officials said. Railway officials said the train was speeding and collided head-on with the barrier. At least 47 people were also injured in the accident.Mohammed Said, the head of the Cairo Railroad hospital, said there are concerns the death toll could rise further following the blaze.Other officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorised to speak to the media.Photographs from the station showed charred bodies lying on the platforms at the Ramsis station in downtown Cairo. Firefighters struggled to get the flames under control.Heavy black smoke rose into the sky as ambulances rushed to the scene. The Ramsis district is among the busiest and most crowded areas of the Egyptian capital. The state railway agency briefly halted all train traffic and ordered the evacuation of the station. </s> CAIRO — A speeding railcar crashed into a barrier at Cairo’s main train station, causing its fuel tank to explode and triggering a huge fire that left at least 25 people dead on Wednesday, officials said.

Railway officials said the train was speeding and collided head-on with the barrier. At least 47 people were also injured in the accident.

Mohammed Said, the head of the Cairo Railroad hospital, said there are concerns the death toll could rise further following the blaze. Other officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to speak to the media.

Photographs from the station showed charred bodies lying on the platforms at the Ramsis station in downtown Cairo. Firefighters struggled to get the flames under control.

Heavy black smoke rose into the sky as ambulances rushed to the scene. The Ramsis district is among the busiest and most crowded areas of the Egyptian capital.

The state railway agency briefly halted all train traffic and ordered the evacuation of the station.

Videos from surveillance cameras inside the station showed flames ravaging the station. A video that surfaced on social media showed men and women carrying bags and personal belonging and walking on the rail platforms as the train car crashed and exploded.

Another video showed men and women running, searching for exits after the explosion. A man runs back and forth, his shirt on fire, until another man rushes to pour water on him.

Egypt’s Prime Minister Mustafa Madbouli said authorities must determine “who caused the accident and hold that person accountable.” He promised “harsh punishment” for the culprits.

Egypt’s railway system has a poor safety record, mostly blamed on decades of badly maintained equipment and poor management. Official figures show that 1,793 train accidents took place in 2017 across the country.

In March last year, President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi said the government lacks about 250 billion Egyptian pounds, or $14.1 billion, to overhaul the run-down railway system. El-Sissi spoke a day after a passenger train collided with a cargo train, killing at least 12 people, including a child.

And in August 2017, two passenger trains collided just outside the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria, killing 43 people. In 2016, at least 51 people were killed when two commuter trains collided near Cairo. </s> CAIRO (AP) — A locomotive crashed into a barrier at Cairo’s main train station at high speed on Wednesday, causing its fuel tank to explode and triggering a huge fire, leaving at least 25 people dead, officials said.

Railway officials said the single railcar was traveling too fast when it collided head-on with the barrier. At least 47 people were also injured.

The explosion and fire blasted through people on the platform in the busy Ramses Station in downtown Cairo. A surveillance video showed the moment of impact when the car barreled past men and women walking by who are then engulfed in flames and smoke. Charred bodies lay on the platform, and a man in flames ran down a staircase in panic, according to other photos and videos posted on social media.

There was no immediate word on whether the crash was the result of a terrorist act. However, one railway official said it was too early to rule it out. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the media.

Ashraf Momtaz, a general railway inspector, told The Associated Press that there were several scenarios for what happened and one was that someone could have set the rail car on high speed, then jumped.

It was not immediately clear if the locomotive had a driver at the time of the crash, Momtaz said.

“The railcar takes time to (gather) speed so there is a chance that someone set it on full speed before leaving,” he said, adding that investigators are considering all scenarios.

“There are records that show which driver is in which railcar,” he said.

In general, he said, the accident signals “negligence from the driver and supervisors.”

Ambulances rushed to the scene and firefighters struggled to get the flames under control.

Egypt General Prosecutor Nabil Sadek ordered an extensive investigation and sent a team of investigators to the station.

The Ramses district is among the busiest and most crowded areas of the Egyptian capital. The state railway agency briefly halted all train traffic and ordered the evacuation of the station.

One video that surfaced on social media showed men and women carrying bags and personal belongings and walking on the rail platforms as the train car crashes and explodes.

Another showed men and women running and searching for exits after the explosion. A man is seen running back and forth, his shirt on fire, until another man rushes to pour water on him.

The accident triggered an online debate among many Egyptians, with many blaming the government for not improving railway services in Egypt, even after a series of deadly accidents. Several noted previous statements by Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi expression reservations about spending too much money on improving trains, for lack of funds.

Mohammed Said, head of the Cairo Railroad hospital, said the death toll could rise.

Egyptian Health Minister Hala Zayed said that many of the wounded are in critical condition, mostly suffering severe burns.

Egypt’s Prime Minister Mustafa Madbouli said authorities must determine “who caused the accident and hold that person accountable.” He promised “harsh punishment” for the culprits.

Egypt’s railway system has a history of badly maintained equipment and poor management. Official figures show that 1,793 train accidents took place in 2017 across the country.

In July 2018, a passenger train derailed near the southern city of Aswan, injuring at least six people and prompting authorities to fire the chief of the country’s railways.

In March last year, President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi said the government lacks about 250 billion Egyptian pounds, or $14.1 billion, to overhaul the run-down rail system. El-Sissi spoke a day after a passenger train collided with a cargo train, killing at least 12 people, including a child.

In August 2017, two passenger trains collided just outside the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria, killing 43 people. In 2016, at least 51 people were killed when two commuter trains collided near Cairo. </s> Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption A train collided with a buffer stop and burst into flames next to a busy platform

At least 20 people have been killed and 40 injured after a train crash sparked a large fire at Cairo's main railway station, Egyptian officials say.

The train hit a buffer stop near the end of a busy platform at Ramses Station, which is in the city centre.

The collision caused the train's fuel tank to explode, setting the platform and nearby buildings alight.

The cause of the crash is not yet clear, but only hours later Transport Minister Hisham Arafat resigned.

Witnesses described seeing several severely burned bodies in the latest disaster to hit Egypt's rundown railways.

State-run media earlier reported a higher death toll of at least 25 and as many as 50 injured.

Image copyright AFP Image caption President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi extended his condolences to the families of the victims

During a visit to the scene, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli vowed to severely punish anyone who was found to have been negligent.

"We will identify who is responsible for the accident and they will be held accountable," he said.

President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi extended his condolences to the families of those who died and pledged to ensure that the injured received the support they needed.

Image copyright EPA Image caption A platform kiosk was engulfed by fire

Local media published what they said was CCTV footage showing people on the busy platform as the train hits the buffer at high speed and explodes.

Another video, taken from a CCTV camera above a nearby subway staircase, appears to show people fleeing as a fireball engulfs the platform.

"I saw a man pointing from the locomotive as it entered the platform, and screaming 'There are no brakes! There are no brakes!', before he jumped out of the locomotive," witness Ibrahim Hussein told Reuters news agency.

"I don't know what happened to him."

Image copyright EPA Image caption The train's fuel tank exploded after the crash

"I removed nearly 20 bodies, and carried them to the ambulance, all of them completely burned," Ahmed Mahmoud told news agency AFP.

"[The train] should have slowed down as it was about to enter the station, but it came in too fast."

The privately owned news website al-Shorouk cited a source as saying the train had been undergoing maintenance when it started moving at speed towards the station's main building without a conductor.

The source added that this was not the first incident of its kind, explaining that there had been two other cases of a train moving without a conductor that had not resulted in any deaths or injuries.

Image copyright EPA Image caption People gathered outside Ramses Station after the crash

Egypt's railway system has a poor safety record, which many observers blame on a lack of investment by successive governments and poor management.

In August 2017, 43 people were killed and more than 100 injured when two passenger trains collided outside the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria.

The country's deadliest rail accident occurred south of Cairo in 2002, when a fire ripped through an overcrowded passenger train, killing more than 370 people. </s> A passenger train has collided with a cargo train in Egypt, killing at least 12 people, including a child.

A passenger train has collided with a cargo train in Egypt, killing at least 12 people, including a child.

Another 39 people were injured in the crash, which took place in the Nile Delta north of Cairo, according to the state-run MENA news agency.

The Health Ministry said the trains were both bound for the country’s capital. Egypt’s railway system has a poor safety record, mostly blamed on decades of poor management and maintenance.

People gather at the scene of the collision (AP Photo/Mostafa Darwish) President Abdel-Fatah el-Sissi has spoken about the need to modernise the railway system to prevent deadly accidents and improve services. Last year he said 180 billion Egyptian pounds were needed to overhaul the network, suggesting that ticket prices should be raised. Deadly accidents have claimed hundreds of lives over the years.

In August, two passenger trains collided just outside Egypt’s Mediterranean port city of Alexandria, killing 43 people, the country’s deadliest rail accident in more than a decade. In 2016, at least 51 people were killed when two commuter trains collided near Cairo. In 2002, a massive fire broke out on a train filled with holiday travellers. The train sped for miles, with flames engulfing one carriage after another, killing more than 370 people.

In November 2012, a speeding train crashed into a bus carrying children to their nursery school in the country’s south, killing more than 50, mostly children between the ages of four and six. Two months later, at least 19 people died in a train derailment south of Cairo. </s> CAIRO — A passenger train collided with a cargo train in Egypt on Wednesday, killing at least 12 people, including a child, in the latest deadly accident involving the country’s underfunded and mismanaged railways.

Another 39 people were injured in the crash, which took place in the Nile Delta north of Cairo, according to the state-run MENA news agency. The Health Ministry said the trains were both bound for the capital.

READ MORE: Lethbridge building hit by train for 2nd time

MENA earlier reported that the collision killed 15 people and injured 40, before revising its toll downwards.

Mahmoud Goma saw the collision. He said he and other local residents loaded injured people into their cars to take them to the hospital, and that some died on the way.

Egypt’s railway system has a poor safety record, mostly blamed on decades of poor management and maintenance.

President Abdel-Fatah el-Sissi has spoken about the need to modernize the railway system to prevent deadly accidents and improve services. Last year he said 180 billion Egyptian pounds (about $10 billion) were needed to overhaul the network, suggesting that ticket prices should be raised.

WATCH: TSB calls for safer railway crossings after N.B. man in wheelchair killed by train

Deadly accidents have claimed hundreds of lives over the years.

In August, two passenger trains collided just outside Egypt’s Mediterranean port city of Alexandria, killing 43 people, the country’s deadliest rail accident in more than a decade. In 2016, at least 51 people were killed when two commuter trains collided near Cairo.

In 2002, a massive fire broke out on a train filled with local holiday travelers. The train sped for miles, with flames engulfing one carriage after another, killing more than 370 people. In November 2012, a speeding train crashed into a bus carrying children to their kindergarten in the country’s south, killing more than 50, mostly children between the ages of four and six. Two months later, at least 19 people died in a train derailment south of Cairo. </s> Cairo: At least 15 people were killed and 40 others injured today when a passenger train collided with a freight train in Egypt, officials said, the latest deadly rail accident in the North African country.

The passenger train collided with the goods train near Kom Hamada station in northern Behira governorate.

At least 15 people were killed and 40 others injured in the accident, according to the Ministry of Transportation.

The injured were taken to nearby hospitals.

The cause of the accident was not immediately known. The passenger train was en route to Alexandria while the cargo train was heading to Cairo, local media reported.

Egypt’s railway system has a poor safety record, mostly blamed on decades of badly maintained equipment and poor management.

Deadly accidents have claimed hundreds of lives over the years. According to latest figures by the state’s statistics agency, 1,249 train accidents took place last year, the highest since 2009 when the number reached 1,577.

In August, 43 people died in a train collision near the coastal city of Alexandria. In 2016, at least 51 people were killed when two commuter trains collided near Cairo. </s> Egypt state TV says death toll rises to 20 in fire following crash, explosion in central Cairo train station

CAIRO (AP) — Egypt state TV says death toll rises to 20 in fire following crash, explosion in central Cairo train station. </s> Authorities said two trains collided in Egypt’s Nile Delta province of Beheira on Wednesday, killing at least 10 people.

The ministry said 21 others were injured in the collision.

The accident took place when two carriages of a passenger train broke off and rammed into a nearby goods train, the Egyptian news portal al-Youm al-Saba reported, citing the province’s security chief.

Transport Minister, Hesham Arafat, left Cairo to visit the site of the collision, state-run newspaper al-Ahram said.

Egypt has seen several railway tragedies in recent years.

In August, more than 40 people were killed in a collision between two passenger trains in Egypt’s coastal city of Alexandria.

In the aftermath, the chief of the country’s state-run railways authority resigned and the government promised to upgrade the service.

Egypt’s worst rail disaster took place in 2002 when a passenger train caught fire, killing more than 360 people. (dpa/NAN)
A train crash and subsequent fire kills at least 25 people at Ramses Station in Cairo, Egypt.