Major road crash kills 19 in Western Desert, dozens wounded

A traffic accident in the Western Desert governorate of El-Wadi El-Gedid killed 19 people and injured dozens of others, state news agency MENA said.

The accident took place late on Tuesday when a microbus collided with a truck on a highway connecting the El-Farafra and El-Wahat El-Bahariya areas, 350 km southwest of Cairo.

Some of those wounded are in critical condition, a security official told MENA.

The accident is the latest in near-daily road crashes in Egypt that claim thousands of lives every year.

The crashes are often blamed on poorly-enforced traffic regulations and reckless driving.

The World Health Organisation says traffic accidents cause nearly 12,000 deaths annually in Egypt.

Source: Ahram Online