Egypt's National Weather Forecast Authority (NWFA) predicted that unstable weather conditions will continue with heavy rain fall over much of the country. Cold weather, thunderstorms and floods are expected in Upper Egypt, Sinai and the Red Sea mountains, said the NWFA. Sand storms are also expected to hit open areas, affecting visibility and navigation at sea. NWFA Head Mohamed Mahmoud Eissa told Al-Masry Al-Youm that the unstable weather is due to what is known as “Christmas winds”. “Autumn, spring and winter seasons are all characterized by stable weather conditions with the exception of what is known as seasonal winds,” he said. “The seasonal winds vary in severity from one year to the next and they include the Christmas winds which pass over the country between 27- 30 December. Seasonal winds are characterized by a number of phenomena which can appear together or alone such as a drop in temperature, rainfall and strong winds.” Eissa also predicted rains on Thursday over Cairo and most of the country but said the weather was expected to improve on Friday. The poor weather conditions and precipitate drops in temperatures have lead to a state of alert in Egypt's border governorates in preparation for expected floods. Security officials said that four people died and 35 were injured in road accidents on three highways near Cairo. They also said that five Red Sea ports have closed and power outages have affected parts of Hurghada and Shalatein. Translated from the Arabic Edition.
