Building collapse in Alexandria kills 22

AFP/CairoAt least 22 people were killed yesterday when a 12-storey building collapsed in the Egyptian coastal city of Alexandria, the health ministry said. Another 11 people were injured, deputy health minister Mohamed al-Sharkawi told AFP. More people were trapped under the rubble and were calling out to rescue teams for help, an interior ministry official said. Emergency services rescued 10 people after the building housing 24 families in the Maamura district of Alexandria collapsed in the early hours, a security official said earlier. Another two people were killed when a three-storey building collapsed in the Nile Delta province of Daqahliya, a security official said. “A mother and her child were killed and eight others injured when the building collapsed,” the official said, adding that an estimated 10 people were still under the rubble. Egypt has seen a number of construction disasters over the years, many of them blamed on planning violations or bad maintenance. On Tuesday, 19 people died and more than 100 were injured when a train carrying military conscripts derailed southwest of Cairo.