Ahmed Kamel – Egypt Daily News
At least two people were killed and more than 30 others injured early Tuesday after a tourist coach collided with a truck near the Egyptian resort city of Hurghada, a popular destination on the Red Sea coast.
According to local authorities, the crash occurred around 4:00 a.m. on the Hurghada–Cairo highway near the town of Ras Ghareb, roughly 150 kilometers north of Hurghada. The bus, belonging to a Red Sea tourism company, was traveling north when it smashed into a heavy transport truck.
Emergency services responded swiftly, deploying ambulances and rescue teams to the site. The injured passengers were transported to nearby hospitals in Ras Ghareb and Hurghada for treatment. Officials said several of the wounded sustained serious injuries.
Victims and Foreign Nationals
Egyptian authorities confirmed that the two fatalities were the coach driver and a Russian tourist. The Russian Consulate General in Hurghada said in a statement on X (formerly Twitter):
“At approximately 4:00 a.m. on November 11, an accident occurred on the Hurghada–Cairo highway near Ras Ghareb. A tourist bus collided with a truck. One Russian citizen and the bus driver were killed. The injured are receiving emergency medical care at a hospital in Ras Ghareb.”
The consulate added that some passengers were being prepared to return to their hotels in Hurghada and that travel agency representatives were assisting at the scene.
Local officials said 36 passengers were injured in total, 24 of whom were foreign tourists, though their nationalities have not yet been fully confirmed.
Popular Tourist Route
The Hurghada–Cairo road is one of Egypt’s most frequently traveled routes, linking the capital to the Red Sea’s resort towns. The drive typically takes around five hours, with many tourist coaches departing in the early morning for excursions to Cairo or the Giza Pyramids.
Authorities have not yet determined the cause of the collision. Investigators are examining whether driver fatigue, speeding, or poor visibility in the pre-dawn hours may have contributed to the crash.
In recent years, the Egyptian government has pledged to modernize its transport networks, launching multi-billion-pound initiatives to upgrade roads, railways, and signaling systems. However, fatal accidents continue to occur with troubling regularity, underscoring ongoing challenges to safety oversight.
As of Tuesday afternoon, authorities said the Hurghada crash site had been cleared, and an investigation was underway to determine responsibility for the deadly collision.
