Egypt's ongoing heatwave claims more lives, toll climbs to 61

Egypt’s continuing heatwave took 21 lives on Tuesday, driving the death toll to 61 in three days, the health minister said.

August is normally a hot month in Egypt, but temperatures have been higher than average over the past few days, soaring to over 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit).

All of the 21 killed on Tuesday were among the elderly, the ministry said in a statement.

Ten people died in Cairo, five in the southern provinces of Assiut and Sohag, two in Cairo's neighbouring Giza, two in Upper Egypt's Luxor, and two in Nile Delta's Damietta, the ministry said in a statement.

It added that 581 were admitted to hospitals after suffering from heat exhaustion, including 204 still under observation.

Fourty people died on Sunday and Monday from the heat.

High levels of humidity are making extreme temperatures increasingly unbearable. Health minister Adel Adawy denied that the deaths were caused by an epidemic or virus.
    ahram.org.eg
   12/8/15
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