Two trucks reportedly collided on the 26 July Corridor on Tuesday night, with the petroleum products carried by one of the trucks causing an explosion. Traffic was brought to a standstill.
In another accident also on Tuesday night, six were killed and another six were injured when two speeding trucks collided on Al-Saady al-Husainiya road in Sharqiya (120km north of Cairo).
Those who died were aged between 18 and 57. The injured were hospitalized in Husainiya and Zagazig.
Traffic accidents are the second highest cause of death in Egypt. The average daily rate of traffic deaths stands at 30 victims, according to experts. A recently released government report revealed 18 Egyptians died on average per day during 2009.
Bad road conditions, traffic law violations and intoxicated drivers are usually blamed for the rising accident rate.
The Russian Ministry of Sport, Tourism and Youth Policy announced recently that it intends to publish on its website a blacklist that includes Egyptian travel agencies after a number of Russian tourists were killed or injured in road accidents over the past few weeks.
