Egypt Rocked by ‘Dragon Storm’, Killing 20
By: Jonathan Pezzi
A man rows his boat on the nile. Source
New York — Torrential downpour and chunks of solid hail have been falling on citizens throughout Egypt this past week. The weather event, dubbed Dragon Storm, has now led to 20 deaths and dozens of injuries as flooding and dangerous conditions displace daily life.
The country’s Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly acknowledged the severity of these storms. "Egypt has not experienced such weather conditions for nearly 35 or 40 years," he said.
Several public institutions have been forced to shut down amid the weather. According to the Middle East Eye, authorities closed down Luxor International Airport, a significant tourist hub, as well as the port of Alexandria and the Red Sea port of Sharm el-Sheikh.
The director of weather forecasting at the Meteorological Authority, Dr. Mahmoud Shaheen, called for citizens to stay indoors, claiming this is the worst weather event to hit Egypt since 1994, when an oil fire caused by a lighting strike killed 500.
The impacts of the storm have had a wide reach. Two trains collided last week due to the bad weather, injuring 13. In Cairo, the water has perpetuated problems from poor infrastructure and lax building regulations, resulting in considerable damage and even death. 5 people in Cairo died when their houses collapsed due to the downpour.
The economic cost has also been extensive. The heavy rains and floods have caused $50 million worth of damages, according to Prime Minster Madboly.
To help those affected, the government has dealt out approximately 100 million Egyptian pounds ($6.3 million) to impacted citizens, including to owners of crops and livestock, in order to rebuild throughout the country.
The sheer destruction has led to widespread criticism of authorities and Egypt’s poor infrastructure. Cairo's water administration has suspended service to the entire city because of the rain had overwhelmed the sewage system. Egypt has no comprehensive rainwater drainage system and relies on a 105-year-old drainage network to siphon rainwater.
Prime Minister Madbouly has acknowledged these criticisms, citing a need for updating sewage and drainage systems as issues stemming from climate change take their toll.