At least 15 people were killed and 32 others injured on Tuesday when a pickup truck carrying day laborers overturned on a highway in Egypt’s Ismailiya governorate.
The fatal crash that occurred on the Al-Dawawis connector road in front of the Al-Shabab power plant, highlights the recurring risks facing agricultural and informal workers in Egypt, who frequently travel to job sites in packed, unregulated vehicles.
Health Ministry spokesperson Hossam Abdel Ghaffar confirmed that emergency services transferred the injured to Al-Qassasin Central Hospital for urgent medical treatment, adding that officials are still compiling victim data and monitoring medical conditions.
Among the deceased are at least six children aged 14 or younger, as well as two young adults aged 18 and 19, according to details published by Al-Masry Al-Youm. Eyewitnesses reported that the driver was speeding when a tire blown out, causing a violent rollover.
Most of the casualties were daily wage laborers traveling to work from the villages of Al-Salhiya Al-Qadima and Al-Azazi in neighboring Sharqia governorate, according to state portal Al-Ahram Gate.
Following the arrival of casualties at regional medical facilities, Dr. Mohamed Alzeir posted a Facebook live video appealing to local youth for blood donations at Al-Qassasin Central Hospital and the Ismailia Medical Complex. “I have bad news for our people in Bahr El-Baqar,” Alzeir said, noting that several injured children were being treated across both facilities.
In response to the tragedy, the Ministry of Social Solidarity and the Ministry of Labor instructed their social protection and irregular labor divisions, alongside the Ismailiya Labor Directorate, to conduct a full investigation.
Officials are assessing financial aid for the victims' families and medical assistance for the injured, subject to official medical evaluations and ministry protocols.
The disaster is the second major worker transport incident in Egypt this week. Days earlier, a pickup truck carrying female agricultural workers overturned along the Belbeis–Abu Zaabal road, injuring 22 workers.
The incident drew renewed criticism from labor rights groups. In a statement following the Belbeis–Abu Zaabal crash, the New Woman Foundation warned that recurring transport accidents expose the fragile protections surrounding agricultural workers, who remain vulnerable due to weak regulatory oversight and fragmented employment arrangements.
The organization noted that while irregular labor is included in national labor legislation, formal rights to occupational safety, health, and social protection remain ineffective without robust enforcement mechanisms.
The Center for Trade Union and Workers Services (CTUWS) also issued a statement demanding an immediate review of transit conditions for daily agricultural workers, calling on authorities to establish mandatory, legally binding safety standards for labor transport.
