[Sam]

OH MY GOD

You guys cannot imagine the disaster that is Sharm El Sheikh!!! Thunder and lightning started last night, around 8-9pm, with light rain. Was very exciting, went outside to stand in the rain, as we don't see it often. Ten minutes later the heavens just opened, and they didn't stop. Our ground floor apartment filled with water quicker than we could get it out, many people homes, shops etc ruined. The rain remained heavy through the night, the storm subsided around 7:45am this morning. Electricity was cut throughout Sharm last night, and all communications. There was no network for any mobile provider, all land lines and internet. Roads were under water (up to 3ft in places), cars abandoned, pavements destroyed (although not sure if that was water or people trying to get the water off the roads). For those that have not traveled to Sharm before, pavements are over 1ft high and there are no drains on any road, all roads became rivers. The ceilings in HSBC and Barclays bank collapsed, also in Tez Tour offices, Metro beside us had a swimming pool as a car park (and I think extensive flood damage inside). The roof of the airport has been damaged and I think the airport closed (not heard any planes anyway).

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Here is a link to some pics I've put up on facebook - not sure if you can access it without being my friend or not, but can try

Shocking is the only word to say.

Sam

 

[MaidenScotland]

Ohh dear Sam but as you have posted I will presume you are ok, don't envy your clean up, my property in the UK has been flooded due to a burst pipe and gone through three floors and I am so glad I am not the one cleaning it up

Maiden

 

[Beatle]

That's awful - I hope you manage the clean up of your apartment goes ok

 

[Sam]

Ohh dear Sam but as you have posted I will presume you are ok, don't envy your clean up, my property in the UK has been flooded due to a burst pipe and gone through three floors and I am so glad I am not the one cleaning it up

Maiden

Yes, we are okay. Thankfully we were home (and had a visitor) so we could clean as the water poured in. It was entering through the sink drain plug where the water has risen so high, and to a lesser extent somehow through the balcony door. We tried the biggest saucepan we had under the sink to catch the water, but it would fill the second it was under. Luckily we were home to move things off the floor and control the water until the rain eased off, I can only imagine what it could have been like if the apartment was empty (I feel sorry for those who have apartments that don't stay in Sharm, everything must be ruined).

Clean ups after flooding is not nice, but the city wide clean up is the biggest issue, so much debris brought from the desert, and the damages to roads and pavements. The President was flown in today to control the situation so I'm hoping the city is back to normal by tomorrow.

 

[Lanason]

Nightmare

Yes, we are okay. Thankfully we were home (and had a visitor) so we could clean as the water poured in. It was entering through the sink drain plug where the water has risen so high, and to a lesser extent somehow through the balcony door. We tried the biggest saucepan we had under the sink to catch the water, but it would fill the second it was under. Luckily we were home to move things off the floor and control the water until the rain eased off, I can only imagine what it could have been like if the apartment was empty (I feel sorry for those who have apartments that don't stay in Sharm, everything must be ruined).

Clean ups after flooding is not nice, but the city wide clean up is the biggest issue, so much debris brought from the desert, and the damages to roads and pavements. The President was flown in today to control the situation so I'm hoping the city is back to normal by tomorrow.

Poor guys - this sounds horrible.
The area we used to live in (near the River Severn) used to flood badly, but we lived on a hill. Glad you are OK.

 

[GM1]

UPDATED:

South Sinai drenched by torrential rainstorm


Heavy rains in several provinces Monday led to the death of 17 people, destroying public property and a number of residences. Thunderstorms also resulted in electricity blackouts in several cities and led to the closure of numerous highways, seaports and airports.

The southern Sinai Peninsula witnessed torrential rains for the first time since 1994, resulting in the closure of five primary roads, the Sharm el-Sheikh International Airport and the Nuweiba seaport. Heavy rains destroyed dozens of homes in the village of Abu Soeira, where a local woman was reportedly killed and three others injured.

Electricity in the entire city of Sharm el-Sheikh was cut for several hours, including at the Sharm el-Sheikh International Hospital, as a result of the bad weather. Dozens of shops in the local market were flooded, along with the entrances to hotels in the area. Ceilings collapsed in the passenger lounges of the old Sharm el-Sheikh airport, meanwhile, slightly wounding an Italian tourist.

According to an official source, both land and mobile telephone networks were cut due to the rains, briefly isolating Sharm el-Sheikh from the rest of the world.

A 22-year-old woman drowned in torrents that fell on the Safaga-Quseir highway along the Red Sea coast.

In North Sinai, another six people were killed by torrential flooding. According to eyewitnesses, a military jeep carrying two Israeli officers was swept away by the downpour.

In Alexandria, the seaport was temporarily closed due to bad weather conditions.

In the Upper Egyptian city of Aswan, meanwhile, electricity was cut for several hours, while nine people were reported killed in road accidents, including one British tourist. More than 40 homes and 57 high-tension electricity towers were also destroyed.

The Weather Forecast Authority has predicted that rain would continue to fall until Wednesday--with heavy winds and low temperatures--over the north coast, the delta and Cairo.

Translated from the Arabic Edition.


source: Torrential rains claim 17 lives countrywide | Al-Masry Al-Youm


Tourist, two villagers die in weather-related accidents in Egypt

Luxor, Egypt - A British tourist and two Egyptian women were killed in weather-related accidents in southern Egypt, police sources said Monday. The British tourist died when a sailboat overturned due to inclement weather on the Nile in Aswan in southern Egypt, the sources said. The victim's wife and two other tourists who were on the same boat survived. Meanwhile, two women were killed after heavy rain led to the collapse of houses made of mud brick in villages near Aswan.


source: Tourist, two villagers die in weather-related accidents in Egypt : Nature Environment

 

[sungirl]

This is just so awful.

I have seen the pictures and spoken to friends living there. They have never seen anything like it ever.

My friend's shops have been devastated, roof leaks, flooding, damaged stock and displays... He is so depressed as times have been tough enough recently in the tourist industry there.

I hope it all gets cleared up soon and that disruption to homes and businesses is minimal.

Thoughts with all of you there xx

 

[josmiler05]

To all sharmers,
What a horrible situation you have over there. We have an apartment there...a friend said water has gone in but not too bad! I just feel so hopeless being in England when I would love to be able to help with the cities clean or just help in some way.
Thinking of you all.

 

[GM1]

another facebook link with pictures of Sharm: Login | Facebook

 

[Sam]

another facebook link with pictures of Sharm: Login | Facebook

Those photos are amazing, puts my amateur "mobile phone photography" to shame, lol.

I hadn't realised Old Market had been hit that hard, I thought Naama Bay was bad, but that was at least still accessible, just.

Things are getting back to normal now. A few roads are still under from pavement to pavement, but not over the pavements anymore and easily drivable with probably any car. I don't think there are any roads closed anymore (except maybe the Cairo Sharm road).

The clean up continues. The debris the water brought in is physically being swept off the roads by men with brushes, many pavements still need to be rebuilt too, but again I'm sure it will be sorted soon enough. I just wish they would get on and finish the streets in Hadaba now, they have been terrible for years.

 

[AMT123]

Hi Sam, just read about the terrible storms in Sinai - but glad to hear that you haven't suffurered too badly from it - must have been an awful time though.

Do you know if the airport is now functioning normally and do you know how badly Dahab was affected? We are due to travel out next week.

Thanks and regards
Anne

 

[Sharmlover]

HI
It was awful. I'm moving to Sharm in April, and was out in January finalising property sale. I was out with friends at the Camel bar when the rain started and like you we laughed as everyone went into shelter from a "few drops of rain". Within minutes that has turned to torrential rain and we too went into shelter. We sat inside the camel bar trying to get shelter but the canvas shelter inside started to rip and guess who was underneath it when it gave way!! lol. i needn't have bothered doing my hair or make up as I was like a drowned rat to say the least.
We couldnt get back to the main Peace road without wading thru dirty water and we didn't know what was in it.
My Egyptian hubbie was back in our rental apt and was phoning to see if i was ok. the apt was flooded and he was putting buckets everywhere. It was even coming thru the air con units. One of my friends hubbies worked in a hotel and he came and took us home. In Riviera it seemed ok when we dropped off one girl but the rest of us were going to Delta and it was mad....no lights and eventually the car couldnt get any further so myself and my friend had to wade thru water again to get to the other side. We were up to our shins.
The electricity in delta didn't come on again till about 12 noon and the wireless and phone connections not until around 10pm. We were all sitting in my friends cafe and someone shouted "ive got a text". You'd think the mobile phone had just been invented as everyone went mad trying out there phones, then someone shouted ten minutes later "ive got network"..lol.
But during the floods on the night, everyone was in good spirits but it took us half an hour to get from the entrance to Naama bay to Delta which is normall about five mins in a car.
I was sorry to hear tho the next day that three people had been killed.
And to think that i laughed at my friend from home that came out with me because she took an umbrella!! maybe she knew something we didn't...lol. Mind you she never had it on the night!!