Region | Egypt

Egypt rockslide toll rises to 75: official

The death toll from a weekend rockslide that buried a shantytown on Cairo's outskirts has reached 75, an Egyptian security official said.

  • Agencies
  • Published: 00:30 September 12, 2008
  • Gulf News

Cairo: The death toll from a weekend rockslide that buried a shantytown on Cairo's outskirts has reached 75, an Egyptian security official said.

The official said on Thursday that rescue workers had recovered more bodies overnight from under mammoth rocks that sheared off a cliff above the Manshiyet Nasser slum. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to the media.

The state-owned Middle East News Agency reported that about 112 families have been moved from the shantytown to new homes after Saturday's tragedy.

Rescuers' fears

The densely populated slum was built beneath unstable limestone cliffs by rural migrants seeking work in Cairo. There are fears many more bodies could be found in the rubble.

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