Egypt's Meteorological Authority expects a very cold start to the New Year on Sunday, especially in Upper Egypt and central Sinai, state news agency MENA reported. In the capital Cairo, temperatures will reach daytime highs of 15 degrees Celsius and night lows of 8 degrees. The Mediterranean city of Alexandria, on Egypt's north coast, is predicted to see similar weather, with a high of 15 C and low of 6 degrees. The Red Sea cities of Marsa Alam, Sharm El-Sheikh, and Hurghada will witness slightly warmer weather with an average of 19 degrees high and a 12 degree low. The town of Saint Catherine will be the coldest in the Sinai Peninsula, dropping to a low of 2 C overnight. Windy conditions are expected to cause turbulent maritime navigation in both the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. The average wave heights in the Mediterranean Sea will be 2-2.5m, while in the Red Sea it will be 2.5-3m. The southern cities of Aswan and Luxor will see average temperatures of 19 C highs and 8 C low, while other southern cities are unlikely to see warmer temperatures, with average highs of 15 – 16 C and average lows of 5-7 C in the governorates of Assuit, Sohag, Minya. Heavy rains are expected along the northern coast while medium rains are expected in Cairo and in northern Upper Egypt. The authority previously announced that the cold spell across the country is expected to break on Monday 2 January.
