A speeding train that crashed into a bus carrying Egyptian children to
their kindergarten on Saturday has killed 51 people and prompted a wave
of anger against a government under mounting pressure to rectify the
former regime's legacy of neglect.
The crash, which killed 48 children between four and six
years old and three adults, led to local protests and accusations from
outraged Egyptians that President Mohammed Morsi is failing to deliver
on the demands of last year's uprising for basic rights, dignity and
social justice.
The accident left behind a mangled shell of a
bus twisted underneath the blood-splattered train outside the city of
Assiut, some 200 miles south of Cairo. Children's body parts, their
books, schoolbags and tiny socks were strewn along the tracks.
Several hours after the accident, Morsi appeared on state television,
promising an investigation and financial compensation for victims'
families. His transport minister and the head of Egypt's railways
resigned.
The response, his critics say, comes too little too
late. For months, transport workers have been complaining about poor
management and poor working conditions.