Egypt's public prosecutor on Thursday ordered the detention of six people for four days in connection with in incident in which a locomotive smashed through buffers and burst into flames at Cairo's main train station.
The train's driver, his assistant, another train driver and three other rail employees will be held for four days pending investigations into Wednesday's incident, the public prosecutor said in a statement.
Egypt's Health Minister Hala Zayed said Thursday that the death toll from the crash had risen to 22. State TV had said Wednesday that 25 people died in the crash, but the health minister revised the toll to 20 later in the day and said 43 people had been injured.
Egypt's public prosecutor said Wednesday that a preliminary investigation indicated the driver had stepped off the train to talk to another driver without pulling the hand brake, causing the unattended locomotive to speed off and hit a concrete platform.
Security camera footage from inside the capital's Ramses station showed the train failing to stop as it arrived at Platform 6, smashing through the buffers and a metal end railing and exploding into a huge ball of fire.
Transport Minister Hisham Arafat, who said the train's diesel tank had exploded, resigned Wednesday. Electricity Minister Mohamed Shaker will temporarily head the Transport Ministry, a cabinet source said Wednesday.
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