Over 20 killed, 23 hurt in Cairo rockslide
Extending help: Egyptians help a panicked woman at the site of a massive rock slide off Moqattam hill in northern Cairo yesterday. At least 18 people were killed and 22 injured when dozens of homes collapsed after being hit by a massive rockslide, Egyptian emergency services said. Picture: AFP
Sunday, September 7, 2008
AT LEAST 20 people were killed and 23 injured yesterday when dozens of homes in northern Cairo collapsed after being hit by a massive rockslide, Egyptian emergency services said.
Several huge lumps of rock weighing "hundreds of tonnes" broke off Moqattam hill overlooking the capital's Deweka district, one security official said on condition of anonymity.
"The rockslide occurred at 8.50am , and the provisional toll stands at 20 dead and 23 injured," the official said. "The rocks hit dozens of homes, causing them to collapse."
The cause of the rockfall was not immediately known.
Rescue teams on site were struggling to make progress because of the size of the boulders. They were being forced to wait for the arrival of cranes and heavy lifting equipment to allow them to move the rocks. Frustrated emergency workers stood by as they awaited the arrival of the specialist machinery needed to move the massive boulders and television crews and print journalists rushed to the scene.
A journalist at the scene of the accident described scenes of panic as the residents of the poor and densely populated shantytown neighbourhood struggled to search for missing friends and relatives.
"Two years ago the authorities warned us that it would fall on top of us, and today the drama has arrived," said Jamal Badr, 32, whose brick-built home was buried in the rockfall. One local resident, who requested anonymity, said that the majority of the properties destroyed in the landslide were inhabited and that they were mainly two-storey buildings.
Cairo Mayor Abdelazim Wazir arrived at the disaster scene to monitor the rescue operation amid fears that the death toll was likely to rise.AFP
Several huge lumps of rock weighing "hundreds of tonnes" broke off Moqattam hill overlooking the capital's Deweka district, one security official said on condition of anonymity.
"The rockslide occurred at 8.50am , and the provisional toll stands at 20 dead and 23 injured," the official said. "The rocks hit dozens of homes, causing them to collapse."
The cause of the rockfall was not immediately known.
Rescue teams on site were struggling to make progress because of the size of the boulders. They were being forced to wait for the arrival of cranes and heavy lifting equipment to allow them to move the rocks. Frustrated emergency workers stood by as they awaited the arrival of the specialist machinery needed to move the massive boulders and television crews and print journalists rushed to the scene.
A journalist at the scene of the accident described scenes of panic as the residents of the poor and densely populated shantytown neighbourhood struggled to search for missing friends and relatives.
"Two years ago the authorities warned us that it would fall on top of us, and today the drama has arrived," said Jamal Badr, 32, whose brick-built home was buried in the rockfall. One local resident, who requested anonymity, said that the majority of the properties destroyed in the landslide were inhabited and that they were mainly two-storey buildings.
Cairo Mayor Abdelazim Wazir arrived at the disaster scene to monitor the rescue operation amid fears that the death toll was likely to rise.AFP
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