Horrific collision on Cairo-Alexandria road in Egypt: Death toll rises to 35

In a spine-chilling turn of events on Saturday, a nightmare unfolded on the Cairo-Alexandria desert road in Egypt’s Beheira governorate. State media paints a blood-curdling picture: at least 35 people dead and over 50 grievously injured. The morning’s serenity was shattered by a catastrophic collision involving a bus, several cars, and even an overturned lorry, all bound for the bustling city of Cairo. Al-Ahram news website, a key source on the incident, recounted the calamity: “A horrific collision on the Cairo-Alexandria desert road near Wadi al-Natrun led to the death of 35 people, at least 18 of whom burnt to death,” adding that “at least 53 were injured”.

Graphic Scenes Flood Social Media

Eyewitness accounts and graphic media from the site soon inundated social media platforms, giving the world a harrowing glimpse into the extent of the devastation. Videos showed a chaotic scene: an overturned lorry sprawled across the fast lane, with its charred remains basking in the desert sun. Flanking this metal carcass were multiple cars, their structures distorted by the ferocious flames that consumed them. Furthermore, massive crowds could be seen, shock written over their faces, as they stared helplessly at the morbid tableau before them.

Egypt’s Perennial Road Safety Crisis

Sadly, such tragedies aren’t rare on Egypt’s roads. Notoriously plagued by ill-maintained roads and a blatant disregard for the highway code, the country witnesses an alarming number of traffic fatalities every year. To put this in perspective, just last year, nearly 7,000 souls were lost to road accidents in this Arab nation, as reported by the news agency AFP.