At least 27 people were injured when stands partly collapsed during a basketball game in the Egyptian capital of Cairo on Saturday, health authorities said, according to The Associated Press.
Officials said part of the seats fell on spectators at the Super Cup match between Cairo’s Al-Ahly and Ittihad of Alexandria following a stampede in the stands.
The game at the Hassan Moustafa Sports Hall in Cairo’s 6th of October district was called off following the incident, local media reported.
Health Ministry spokesman Hossam Abdel-Ghaffar said in a statement that most of the injured suffered broken bones. He said they were taken to hospitals and their injuries were not life threatening.
Footage on social media showed metal stands collapsed in the multi-purpose arena, which is named for Hassan Moustafa, head of the International Handball Federation. It opened three years ago ahead of the 2021 World Men’s Handball Championship, which Egypt hosted.
In 2012, more than 70 people were killed during a soccer riot in Port Said.
In 2015, a stampede prompted by heavy tear gas fired by police outside a stadium in a Cairo suburb killed 22 people.