A police statement said Tuesday the first accident took place on the main road between Cairo and the Delta Nile city of Belbeis in Sharqiya province involving four vehicles.

A van carrying workers tried to overtake two trucks but because of the fog and crashed into one of the trucks and then careened head on into another oncoming truck and a van.

The second accident, in the same province, involved two trucks, once again trying to pass each other, leaving 10 killed and 20 injured.

Accidents are common in Egypt because of bad roads and poor enforcement of traffic rules. An estimated 8,000 people die in accidents annually.