Rockslide death toll rises to 47

DEATH TOLL: At least 43 people have now died in the rockslide. (Getty Images)

A total of 47 people were killed in a massive weekend rockslide in Egypt which flattened homes in a north Cairo shantytown, a security official said on Monday, more than 48 hours after the tragedy.

He said that 47 bodies had been recovered from under the boulders, while the official MENA news agency quoted the interior ministry as saying that 57 people had been injured.

Giant boulders crushed dozens of homes in the shantytown of Manshiyet Nasser in the early morning landslide on Saturday, burying whole families under the rubble.

Egypt's mufti - the leader of its Sunni Muslim faithful - Sheikh Ali Gomaa said that all who died were "martyrs", the independent daily Al-Masri Al-Youm reported.

Television reports suggested that as many as 500 people could be missing as rescuers continued in a desperate race to find survivors of the tragedy, which struck in the first week of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Rescue efforts are proceeding slowly as authorities break the giant rocks into pieces small enough to be lifted from the area.

Most of the brick-built dwellings in the district have two floors and were put up without adhering to planning regulations and without construction permits.

Some survivors refused to go to tents put up by the authorities, insisting instead on being given proper new homes.

Others, such as 60-year-old Abdallah Salem whose home was unscathed by the rockslide, feared further rocks tumbling down.

"We're afraid to sleep in our homes for fear that our fate might be the same as that of our neighbours," Salem told the independent Al-Badil newspaper.

The arid Moqattam hill is broken up by chalky rock slopes, and a number of unofficial housing areas are huddled at its base, along the length of a main road into the city.

Several rockslides have happened in the area previously, the most deadly of which killed 70 people in the adjacent Zabaleen area in 1993.

"The government knew that people could die and, in spite of that, it didn't take any action," resident Waheed Rabie told the state-owned Egyptian Gazette newspaper.

Egypt has a poor track record of building safety often blamed on the flouting of construction regulations, particularly involving adding extra floors without permission.

In December, 35 people died when a 12-storey apartment block in the northern city of Alexandria collapsed as restoration work was under way on the first floor.

IN PICS: Egypt rock slide tragedy
Arabian Business brings you dramatic images from the rock slide tragedy in northern Cairo.

Hopes fade in Egypt rockslide disaster
Massive rockside north of Cairo leaves at least 31 dead and 47 injured with many still buried under rubble.

Print | Email | Discuss this article |

READERS' COMMENTS

View all comments (0)

Have your say

Click here to post a comment

Add your Comment All posts are sent to the administrator for review and are published only after approval. ArabianBusiness.com reserves the right to remove any comment at any time for any reason. Please keep your responses appropriate and on topic.
Name *
Remember me on this computer
Email *	(Your email address will not be published)
City
Country
Subject *
Comment *
Notify me of further comments
Security Code *
Please click post only once - your comment will not be published immediately.

MORE FROM ARABIANBUSINESS.COM