Unusually heavy rain has crippled life in the Egyptian capital, creating massive traffic jams, trapping commuters and inundating entire neighbourhoods.
The bad weather conditions began on Monday and spilled over onto Tuesday, when rain continued to fall. The cold spell has also hit areas outside Cairo.
Responding to the wet weather, the government announced the suspension on Tuesday of school and university classes nationwide in anticipation of more bad weather.
This is the second time since October that Cairo, a Nile-side metropolis of some 20 million people, has been paralysed by a heavy downpour.
In scenes reminiscent of the city’s predicament four months ago, it took some commuters up to six hours to complete a journey that normally takes 45 minutes or less.
The city’s eastern suburbs were the worst hit. Images and videos circulating online showed cars almost completely submerged by rainwater on the main thoroughfare of the Fifth Settlement, the area’s main residential and commercial neighbourhood.
Some areas in the capital also experienced power cuts and internet disruptions.
Cairo does not have a drainage system to absorb and recycle rainwater, depending instead on mobile pumps that are deployed on wet days to remove water from the streets and vehicular tunnels.
Sitting on the southern tip of the Nile Delta surrounded by desert to the east and west, the Egyptian capital gets infrequent rainfall but struggles to deal with wet conditions when it does rain. Officials say that building a rain drainage network would cost billions of dollars and that it would not be economically feasible to spend so much on a project that is used once or twice a year.
TWISTERS
Director: Lee Isaac Chung
Starring: Glen Powell, Daisy Edgar-Jones, Anthony Ramos
Rating: 2.5/5
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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yallacompare profile
Date of launch: 2014
Founder: Jon Richards, founder and chief executive; Samer Chebab, co-founder and chief operating officer, and Jonathan Rawlings, co-founder and chief financial officer
Based: Media City, Dubai
Sector: Financial services
Size: 120 employees
Investors: 2014: $500,000 in a seed round led by Mulverhill Associates; 2015: $3m in Series A funding led by STC Ventures (managed by Iris Capital), Wamda and Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority; 2019: $8m in Series B funding with the same investors as Series A along with Precinct Partners, Saned and Argo Ventures (the VC arm of multinational insurer Argo Group)
Results:
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6pm: Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan National Day Cup (PA) Group 3 Dh500,000 1,600m | Winner: RB Torch, Fabrice Veron, Eric Lemartinel
6.30pm: Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan National Day Cup (TB) Listed Dh380,000 1,600m | Winner: Forjatt, Chris Hayes, Nicholas Bachalard
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup for Private Owners Handicap (PA) Dh 70,000 1,400m | Winner: Hawafez, Connor Beasley, Ridha ben Attia
7.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 80,000 1,600m | Winner: Qader, Richard Mullen, Jean de Roaulle
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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