CAIRO: Flash floods and rains that decimated 1,246 homes in Aswan have finally subsided, governor Mustapha Al-Sayed said Sunday. At least 15 people were killed in the floods that occurred last week, mainly in Aswan and Sinai but also in Qena and the Red Sea, while thousands of homes were completely or partially destroyed especially in the first three days when the rains were at their worst. The flooding and the amount of damage incurred has angered the victims, who have severely criticized the government for its response which they deemed to be too slow and ineffective. Around 1,000 residents of El-Tor in Sinai protested the government's reaction to the crisis Wednesday. They used trucks to block the main roads and threw stones at police, who used tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the crowd. Two policemen were injured in the clashes. The cabinet will convene next Wednesday to organize the relief efforts from the devastation caused by the floods as well as begin doling out the compensation packages for those who lost their homes. The head of the Atomic Energy Authority Mohamed El-Qolali said Sunday that all radiation-monitoring centers in Egypt were not affected by the floods, including the stations in Aswan and Sinai. He added that the stations were built on high altitudes and were not damaged, though the station in Al-Arish was shut down for two hours due to the disruption of the phone lines.
