Fire fighters and onlookers gather at the scene of a fiery train crash at the Egyptian capital Cairo's main railway station on February 27, 2019. (AFP)
Egypt's prosecutor-general ordered on Tuesday the detention of another five railway employees, totaling 11, as part of the investigations into last week’s deadly train accident at Cairo's Ramses Railway Station, which left 22 people dead.
The prosecution had initially ordered six railway workers to be detained for 15 days pending investigation into the accident where a train crashed into the barriers at Cairo’s busiest station last Wednesday, igniting a huge fire.
The prosecution released a statement on Tuesday saying that the recent detainees worked at the railway station as station master, head of railway operations, inspector of maneuvers and two operation supervisors.
The investigations have revealed that no traces of explosive materials were found at the scene, while a train maneuvering operator detained for suspected involvement in the crash tested positive for the potent narcotic “strox.”
Prior to the crash, the driver of the rogue locomotive that caused the accident had dismounted, without turning off its engine, to speak with the driver of a second train that had accidentally rammed the locomotive.
When the two trains disengaged, the now-unmanned locomotive moved at maximum speed towards the station until it collided with a concrete barrier at the end of the line and burst into flames.
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