At least 25 reported killed in train crash in Cairo

At least 25 people were killed and 50 others injured on Wednesday in a train crash in Cairo.

A speeding locomotive smashed into a barrier at Cairo's main train station, causing its fuel to explode, triggering a huge fire in the city's main train station.

According to the BBC, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli visited the scene and raised concerns that the death toll could rise further following the blaze.

He said the cause of the collision was not yet known, and vowed to punish anyone who was found to be negligent. "We will identify who is responsible for the accident and they will be held accountable," Madbouli said.

Hisham Arafat, the Egypt's minister of Transport, resigned following the accident.

Egypt's prosecutor-general has opened an investigation into the incident and police are investigating CCTV cameras and talking to witnesses to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident, according to egyptianstreets.com

Egypt has one of the oldest and largest rail networks, and crashes and other incidents have been common. The railway system has a poor safety record, mostly blamed on decades of poorly maintained equipment and bad management.

In early 2018, a cargo train crashed with a passenger train in the Beheira province in the Nile delta. The passenger train was traveling to the country's capital.

In 2017, at least 41 people were killed and 179 injured when a train crashed into the rear of another one near Khorshid station in the suburbs of the eastern edge of Alexandria.

In 2016, at least 51 people were killed when two commuter trains collided near the Egyptian capital of Cairo.

In 2012, a speeding train hit a school bus carrying about 70 children, killing more than 50 of them between the ages of four and six. It occurred at a rail crossing near Manfalut, 230 miles south of Cairo.

Contact the writer at edithmutethya@chinadaily.com.cn