Death on the tracks

People crossing the tracks mumbled tearfully: "There is no God but God" and "God have mercy on us", and inquired from central security policemen about the body count and the other casualties. According to the latest figures provided by the Ministry of Health, 47 people were killed and 104 were injured. The Interior Ministry put the toll at 44 dead and 94 wounded.

The tragedy will not be soon forgotten by those who witnessed it. "I saw the train speeding in and suddenly the engine was 10 metres up in the air and turning over, crashing past the station platform and falling into the square behind it," recounted Gamal El-Niklawi, the owner of a fuul shop. "There were people hanging all over the train, fare-dodgers who ride on the roof-top. The crash sent up columns of smoke and dust. Then the moaning and screaming began. It was like the bodies were turning into minced meat," he said, his eyes frantic with terror. Just across the street from his shop, the fruit, butcher's and fittir shops were all flattened to the ground by the crash.

And this was only the beginning of the nightmare. "We waited for two hours before anyone came to help us," said Osama Hassan Khalifa, a micro-bus driver. "At first, it was the drivers at the station and people on the street who came to the aid of the wounded, transporting them to nearby hospitals and collecting the bits and pieces of bodies off the street."

Everyone seems to have a horror story to tell, about a body part they lifted or covered up. "The people of Kafr Al-Dawwar fought a veritable battle," shouted Ezzeddin Sankari, head of the town's Cleaning Authority. "There was no one here to help us, not a single policeman, as our children lay under the wreckage drowning in their blood." The last bodies to be recovered were pulled out at 6am on Monday, after two cranes were used to remove the train carriages, now reduced to twisted iron hulks.

According to official accounts, however, rescue activities began within one hour after the crash, with 400 ambulances and mobile clinics rushing to the site of the tragedy. Highly publicised visits were made by Health Minister Ismail Sallam and Transport Minister Suleiman Metwalli.

"The care we provided reached international standards," boasted Dr Mohamed Ne'matallah, head of the Kafr Al-Dawwar government hospital. "In less than 30 seconds, we had people in this hospital." However, in the same breath, Dr Ne'matallah conceded that traffic over the two kilometres between the hospital and the site of the tragedy was bad because of the crowds who had gathered there.

Everyone at the hospital who was interviewed by Al-Ahram Weekly said they were brought there by private cars. Moreover, people complained that no blood transfusions had been available. Even worse, anyone who wanted to donate blood had to purchase the empty plastic container, tubes and needles necessary for the procedure at a cost of approximately LE18. "I would have liked to donate my blood, but I don't have the money," lamented Khalifa Mohamed. Ne'matallah, however, claimed that all 88 cases received at the hospital were provided with the necessary care.

Upstairs, the wounded gave their own accounts of the tragedy. "I was on my way home from school with my friends," said Zakia, a young girl whose head and arm were wrapped in bandages. "We were waiting for the train to pass, but suddenly it turned toward us. Someone grabbed me from behind and pulled us under a parked car. There were bricks flying everywhere and I was soaked in blood." Zakia's father held on to her protectively. "God has wished her a new life," he muttered.

Ahmed Attia was riding in the first carriage. "I always take this train," he said as he lifted the blanket to show off his broken legs. "This time in Abees, the train stopped and then travelled on slowly until it reached the town of Biyda, causing a 10-minute delay. Then we picked up speed. When we reached the bridge, passengers got up and stood at the door to get out, but the train didn't slow down. There was a big shake, and those standing by the door fell out. I looked out of my window and we were hitting the stores, and then the statue of the unknown soldier, which stopped the train and proved to be our saviour."

According to the preliminary findings of an investigation undertaken by a technical committee, a ticket-dodger had cut off the compressed air brake system connecting the locomotive with the carriages, causing the brakes to fail. Hassan Latif, the assistant driver, said the brake system was not working when the train reached Kafr Al-Dawwar. But the tragedy, he added, could have been averted, had the train not been diverted onto a siding. Technically, he said, the main tracks would have made the train slow down and eventually stop. The train's driver, Michele Ibrahim, died in the tragedy. Five top railway officials have been suspended from work.