Egyptian prosecutors blame gross negligence for deadly train collision
The March train crash that killed at least 19 people is the latest disaster to strike Egypt's aging rail system.
Prosecutors in Egypt said that gross negligence played a part in last month’s deadly train accident, alleging that neither the driver of the moving train nor his assistant were in the cabin at the time of the crash.
A passenger train collided with another on March 26, killing at least 19 people and injuring dozens of others in the southern province of Sohag. Following the crash, the moving train’s driver and seven others were arrested.
The public prosecution also said a drug test showed the assistant of the stationary train as well as a track signalman had used the painkiller Tramadol, and that the assistant had also used hashish.
The automatic train control systems were deactivated on both trains, the prosecutors said, with both drivers reportedly saying that using the systems would have prolonged their travel time. Witnesses also told the prosecution that the emergency brake had not been activated on the moving train.
