Our livelihoods are ruined. Mahmoud Kamaleddin, owner of a fish restaurant, has been in the business for 40 years, but he has never seen it so bad. Looking about the street, he estimated that 70 per cent of the 18,000 inhabitants of Abu Qir have suffered financial losses. Kamaleddin is no exception. At the lunch hour, his shop is empty.
People are so scared.
The fishing trade has been brought to a complete halt. There are none to be seen. Magdi Ali, a fisherman, expressed similar frustration. As an example of the sorry state of the local market he noted that before the disaster shrimp was selling for LE90 per kilo. It has since dropped to LE40 per kilo.