Unseasonal spring storm paralyses Egypt’s Alexandria, prompts state of emergency

Dubai: The northern Egyptian city of Alexandria was battered by unseasonal and violent weather on Saturday, as powerful thunderstorms, gale-force winds, and hail pummeled the Mediterranean port. The storm flooded streets, damaged infrastructure, and disrupted daily life in what local media described as an “unprecedented” spring storm.

Egyptian authorities declared a state of emergency, activating response teams across the governorate as the storm toppled trees, inundated underpasses, and shattered seafront windows with bursts of wind-driven hail.

Several districts reported power outages and traffic paralysis, while waterlogged streets forced businesses to close and residents to seek shelter.

Governor Ahmed Khaled Hassan Saeed placed all municipal agencies on high alert, mobilizing public sanitation crews, civil defense teams, and the Egyptian Red Crescent to work around the clock draining flooded roads, clearing debris, and rescuing stranded vehicles and individuals. Field crews were seen towing cars from submerged streets and restoring access to key routes across the city.

Dramatic footage circulated on social media, showing lightning cracking over the Mediterranean, hail pelting deserted boulevards, and café patrons scrambling indoors as wind-driven hail shattered windows along Alexandria’s famed Corniche. The city’s public transport authority increased bus services to help ferry students and workers through the deluge.

In response, Governor Saeed postponed middle school exams by an hour, while Alexandria University deferred Saturday’s exams until after the Eid Al Adha holiday. Water pressure was also temporarily reduced in flood-prone areas to ease the burden on the city's overstretched drainage system.

According to Mahmoud Shaheen, Director of Forecasting at Egypt’s Meteorological Authority, the storm was caused by a low-pressure system that triggered intense downbursts and thunderclouds unusually close to the ground. While he ruled out the possibility of a cyclone, Shaheen acknowledged the severity of the event, noting that such atmospheric instability is increasingly common during Egypt’s transitional seasons.

The Egyptian Meteorological Authority warned that unstable weather is expected to persist in the coming days, with continued rainfall likely over the northwest coast, Lower Egypt, and parts of Greater Cairo. Winds could reach up to 50 kilometers per hour, raising dust storms across desert and coastal areas, including parts of Sinai.

Although no casualties were reported, the storm is part of a worrying trend of extreme weather events that scientists attribute to climate change. Alexandria, a city of over six million, is among the most climate-vulnerable urban centers in the Middle East, already contending with coastal erosion, flooding, and rising sea levels.