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Completion of construction of Aswan dam (1970)
On January 9, 1960, the construction of the Aswan Dam began with a blasting. Four years later, after completion of the first construction phase, Nile water was introduced for the first time to fill the reservoir. The dam was completed on 21 July 1970. However, it was only ceremonially opened on 15 January 1971 by Nasser's successor Anwar el-Sadat. The filling of the reservoir, later called Nassersee, was not completed until 1976. The project cost the equivalent of about 2.2 billion euros. 451 people lost their lives in connection with the construction work. (wp)