Wadi Alam flood works at Marsa Alam are due to finish in January 2027

The second and third phases of flood protection on the main Wadi Alam at Marsa Alam are targeted for completion in January 2027. They cover 11 structures on tributary wadis, at a cost approaching EGP 270 million and with capacity for about 11 million cubic metres of rainwater, according to a survey of the governorate's flood defences published by Youm7.

The water resources and irrigation minister inspected sites at Wadi Alam in recent days, among them the Wadi Alam outfall and lake B1, the outfalls of Wadi El-Sukari and Wadi Umm Khariga, and lake B7.

Where the structures go was chosen with the terrain and environmental considerations in mind, including keeping long-established trees inside the wadis. The dam site proposed in the preliminary studies for protecting Wadi Umm Khariga was moved so the trees would not be damaged.

Along the rest of the coast

At Hurghada and Safaga the works include five detention dams in the Faleq El-Sahl, Faleq El-Waar and El-Boroud El-Abyad wadis, along with four artificial lakes and three stilling basins. Their combined storage is put at 5.812 million cubic metres, at a cost of about EGP 200 million.

At El Quseir, works at Wadi El-Quweih, about 30 kilometres north of the city, include a collection lake and a guide barrier. At Wadi El-Ambagi there is a collection lake, three main barriers and a secondary one, plus a ford that lets traffic keep moving while water is running. The stated aims are to harvest rain and flood water, to protect development projects including the El-Quweih farm, and to secure the main roads linking El Quseir to neighbouring towns.

Further south, the Wadi Howdein lakes at Shalatin have been enlarged to 16 million cubic metres at a cost of EGP 155 million. Other works at Marsa Alam protect housing in the Abu El-Hassan area.

North of Hurghada, between Zafarana and Ras Ghareb, barriers and lakes protect the monasteries of St Anthony and St Paul. Around St Paul's there are five artificial lakes, eight earth barriers and a channel; at St Anthony's, existing guide barriers were upgraded and four lakes cleaned ahead of the rain season. At Ras Ghareb, three guide barriers sit on the Ghareb–Sheikh Fadl road at kilometres 8, 50 and 51, and the Wadi El-Darb lake holds up to 9.7 million cubic metres.

The report describes the works as serving two purposes: holding back flood water away from towns, roads and installations, and storing rainwater in artificial lakes for later use.