At a time the Egyptian government sought to deny responsibility for the aftermath of the heavy rains that hit the country two days ago, the country’s parliamentarians focused their attack on ministers and local officials for failing to prepare for flash floods.
In the downpour’s fallout, at least six people were killed in different governorates. Traffic was crippled in Cairo for more than five hours.
Egypt’s cabinet released a statement confirming that all concerned authorities are working to overcome the consequences of heavy downpours. This included the governor of Cairo and security and traffic officers.
On the other hand, parliamentarians launched a major attack against ministers in the government, blaming them for not properly preparing for the wave of heavy rains.
MPs requested a briefing by ministers on the repercussions of the crisis, which affected several provinces, and weather forecasts.
In one dramatic video, a man on a bulldozer pulls the lifeless body of a little girl out of the water in a flooded area in northern Sharqia Province as shouts and screams are heard in the background.
Another video shows a policeman, steps away from the presidential palace in Cairo's district of Heliopolis, wading into a flooded street to unclog a sewage drain.
Authorities closed schools and universities in the greater Cairo area Wednesday and companies saw only skeletal staff show up at work. Authorities said later that schools would reopen Thursday.
Adel el-Ghadban, governor of the Mediterranean province of Port Said, said schools would be closed across the province Thursday because of continued bad weather there.
The mayhem raised questions about Cairo's ability to deal with such heavy rains as the city's infrastructure and sewage and drainage systems have suffered from years of poor maintenance.
