Emergency response teams in Egypt remained on alert Friday after the second oil spill this month in the Nile River stoked fears that the oil could flow further downstream. The teams have been in place since Wednesday, when a fuel barge capsized near the southern Egyptian city of Sohag, some 375 kilometres south of Cairo, dpa reported. According to the daily Al-Masry Al-Youm, a team of chemists and technicians were testing water samples every two hours to detect contamination. Egyptian officials have attempted to quell fears that the oil could flow downstream by suggesting it might evaporate before it reaches any major cities. The spill comes less than two weeks after a tanker spilled around 100 tons of oil near the southern tourist city of Aswan, nearly 900 kilometres south of Cairo. The majority of Egypt's population live within a few kilometres of the Nile River, which supplies the country with most of its water.
