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Rain, Sandstorms Kill at Least 31 in Egypt

   VOA News 13 December 2010
   An  Egyptian  fisherman  in  his boat on the Nile river, during a dust
   storm in Cairo, Egypt, Dec 12, 2010

Photo: AP

   An  Egyptian  fisherman  in  his boat on the Nile river, during a dust
   storm in Cairo, Egypt, Dec 12, 2010

   Egyptian  officials  say rain and sandstorms that battered the country
   for several days have killed at least 31 people.
   The hardest-hit areas were in northern Egypt, where the storms brought
   heavy rains and wind.
   At  least  13  of  the  deaths  came  in  a six-story factory building
   collapse  in  the northern port city of Alexandria. Building collapses
   blamed  on  poor construction and failure to follow building rules are
   relatively frequent in Egypt.
   Officials  said  Monday  they had reopened ports on the Red Sea, which
   had been closed because of the storms.
   Officials  also  blamed  the  weather  for poor visibility that led to
   traffic accidents.

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