King orders urgent action to mitigate floods, warns against negligence

JEDDAH, 26,Jan 2011 (Arab News): Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah urged the authorities on Wednesday to take immediate action to tackle problems caused by the heavy rains, warning that those who show negligence would be severely punished.

A statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) said the king has instructed the finance minister to allocate necessary funds for this.

"Those who show negligence in implementing this order will face severe punishment," the king said. "As a result of heavy rains causing dangerous damage to people and installations and Jeddah facing the danger of drowning in many areas, all necessary action should be taken immediately without delay," he said.

The king, who is now convalescing in the Moroccan city of Casablanca following back surgery, said such measures should be taken immediately in light of weather reports that there will be more rains in coming days.

"All related departments should work day and night to end the problem and those who show negligence in dealing with this important matter will be severely punished," King Abdullah said, while urging top officials to update him with developments relating to floods in Jeddah and its surrounding areas.

The royal decree was addressed to Crown Prince Sultan, deputy premier and minister of defense and aviation; Prince Naif, second deputy premier and minister of interior; Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal; Municipal and Rural Affairs Minister Prince Mansour bin Miteb; Finance Minister Ibrahim Al-Assaf; Transport Minister Jabara Al-Seraisry; Water and Electricity Minister Abdullah Al-Hussayen; and Health Minister Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah.

As of Wednesday evening, there were reports of three teenagers who suffered electric shocks, a broken dam and hundreds of stranded students in different parts of the city.

Eyewitnesses told Arab News that East Jeddah was swamped and floodwater was rushing west toward the Red Sea, turning streets once more into rivers. Witnesses said the Um Al-Khair dam had been breached, flooding nearby neighborhoods.

Jeddawis said Wednesday's downpour was the heaviest in 17 years. "Jeddah has not witnessed such heavy rains in recent years, causing floods and trapping people in rainwater," one Saudi said.

The city was in total mess and mayhem. Traffic came to a standstill and long lines of people walking home, abandoning their vehicles in water, could be seen. But walking in some places was dangerous because of potholes and exposed electric wires. Some had to walk up to six hours to reach home.

Residents rose up to the occasion by helping people in trouble. Some were seen carrying schoolchildren and elderly to safety. Many people took refuge in Al-Andalus Mall in the Old Airport area where they recharged their cell phones to contact families.

Water in the Al-Hamra district was waist-deep in some places and some schools were preventing students from leaving. The heavy downpour did not begin until after students went to class where they are currently taking end-of-semester exams.

Unconfirmed reports said three girl students suffered electric shocks at KAU. It was not immediately clear if any of the girls died. Many KAU students and staff, especially women, had to stay up late in the evening at the university because of the floods.

Dr. Sami Badawood, director of health in Jeddah, said Civil Defense helicopters transported eight injured people to hospital, as ambulances could not move because of flooded roads. He said all government hospitals have been instructed to stay alert to meet any eventualities.

Some witnesses also reported helping Civil Defense officials who themselves had become marooned in rising waters in some parts of the city.

Palestine Street, Madinah Road, Wali Al-Ahad Street and the entire Bani Malik district were either flooded or jammed with traffic. Cars could be seen swept away by fast flowing rainwater in some areas. Five historical buildings in the Balad district also collapsed as a result of the rains. The buildings were empty and uninhabited.

Three hundred students at Dar Al-Hekma were held up inside the college until 5 p.m. At Effat College the situation remained the same. The Civil Defense advised students not to leave the premises, and college authorities were making efforts to ensure the safety of students and staff members.

Thirty Al-Falah DPS school students and eight teachers were held up in the school, unable to return home in the Sharafiyyah district of the city due to traffic jammed roads and flooded streets. "We have arranged accommodation for them. They had come to school to attend Indian Republic Day functions," said Zia Nadvi, the school's director.

Nearly 100 employees of the Ministry of Information and the Islamic Development Bank were trapped inside their buildings. The Palestine Street and Hail Street were the worst affected and people called them Palestine River and Hail River.

The Presidency of Meteorology and Environment predicted rains accompanied by strong winds in coming hours. "We expect heavy downpours in the northeastern parts of Jeddah, north of Makkah and Hijrah Road," it said.

Air traffic at King Abdulaziz International Airport was unaffected. "The air traffic control and operation systems at the airport are well-prepared to deal with such situations," said Khaled Al-Khaibary, spokesman for the General Authority of Civil Aviation.

He said the landing and takeoff of flights were taking place at the airport normally despite the rains. "Usually, pilots will be instructed to keep their planes floating in the air if there are lots of water on runaways. But today the water level on runways was at an acceptable level for landing and taking off. Visibility was also OK."



Power outages, fires

Power outages were reported across the city and fires due to short-circuiting, including one at the popular Hera Mall. Civil Defense teams managed to put out the mall fire, which did not cause casualties.

In one neighborhood, flash floods swept away a car, which then got stuck into a large open flood drain, causing water levels in the district to further rise.

Among the major thoroughfares that came under heavy flooding was Madinah Road, which runs through the middle of the city from north to south leading to King Abdul Aziz International Airport. A massive traffic jam could be seen until the afternoon as rains continued.

Officials at the Jeddah Traffic Department said vehicle movement on the Haramain Expressway came to a standstill as a result of huge flooding close to Palestine Street. There were also reports of traffic disruption along King Abdul Aziz Road because of flooding. To avoid traffic jams, motorists used minor roads in residential districts.

Citizens reported a total absence of traffic police in streets and motorists were running red lights and driving in the wrong direction, over pavements and medians. People also reported accidents on roads, adding that the situation was a total chaos.

The situation in districts the east of the city, which were struck by deadly flash floods in 2009, was uncertain. There were reports that many Saudis and expatriates were trapped in flood waters in the area.

Residents of the Um Al-Khair and Al-Ajwad 1 and 2 districts reported heavy flooding. Seeing dark clouds and fearing heavy rain, many residents of the city's Quwaizah district, which took the brunt of Nov. 25, 2009 flash floods, left their homes to live with friends and relatives in other parts of the city.

Mansour Al-Mazrouie, head of the meteorology department at King Abdulaziz University, said the rains in Jeddah were caused by climate change. The average amount of rainfall during the winter months (November to January) is about 51mm.

On Jan. 15, Al-Mazrouei said Jeddah received 41.7mm of rainfall in four hours.

There were rains on Wednesday in other parts of the Kingdom, including in Riyadh, the Eastern Province, Qassim, Hail and Madinah. According to one report, one person died and five others were injured in accidents caused by rain in the Eastern Province. Traffic police said as many as 53 traffic accidents happened in the province as a result of heavy rains. The Civil Defense attended to at least eight cases of electric short circuits.

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