Days of heavy rain turn Nile River brown
Days of heavy rain across Egypt caused the color change by washing soil into the river
Egyptians woke up Monday to find the Nile River had turned a murky brown after stormy weather and subsequent flooding.
Officials explained that days of heavy rain across Egypt caused the color change by washing soil into the river.
The discoloration forced the closure of several main water treatment stations and caused the disruption of water supplies in some areas.
Egypt is almost entirely dependent on the Nile for drinking water. Egypt’s Ministry of Water Resources spokesman said the water was not contaminated and would be purified.
al arabiya
The Nile’s water will return to normal within a maximum of three days, a source at the ministry told Alarabiya.net.
A spokesman for the Egyptian Holding Company for Water said the water treatment stations that were closed would reopen when the sediment caused by flood waters recedes.
al arabiya
In addition to polluting the Nile, the floods caused power outages, displaced hundreds of people, and swept away dozens of cars, particularly in the Red Sea city of Ras Ghareb.
(with the Associated Press)
