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JEDDAH—A Filipino was among the 11 people who died from flooding
in Jeddah, the Civil Defense office in Saudi Arabia announced on Friday.
Of the 11 who died from Wednesday's heavy downpour, two were
identified as Saudis, one Filipino, two Chadians, one Egyptian, one
Turk, one Yemeni, one Bangladeshi and a Nepalese. The eleventh flood
casualty has yet to be identified.
Three people were reported by their families as missing. At least 100
people were being treated with injuries while three were in intensive
care.
All private and public schools will remain closed through February 11, the Ministry of Education said.
Buts and Blossoms International School will be closed for three days
for maintenance work because of rains and will reopen Tuesday, the
school principal said.
Major roads were reopened, but many residents in flooded districts
remained without mobile phone signals due to damages to nearby towers.
Most residents had power restored to their homes, but the Saudi
Electricity Company said Friday that 4,361 subscribers were still in the
dark. Jeddah police spokesman Colonel Misfer Al-Juaid said that police
units were dispatched to areas lacking electricity in order to prevent
looting.
Rescue helicopters maintained their search over water-logged areas
east of the Haramain Expressway and other parts of the city. The Civil
Defense office said that since Thursday night it has rescued 1,451
people with the help of its ground staff and 498 people by helicopters.
Traffic police were deployed in larger numbers to the city's major
arteries, such as Andalus and Palestine streets and King Abdullah Road,
to help the flow of traffic. Officials estimate more than 11,000 cars
were stranded in flood waters.
Saleh Hefni, president of Halawani Ikhwan factories, said his food
company’s cars and trucks in Jeddah are idle because of the rain,
affecting about 8,000 points of sale in Jeddah and Makkah.
Hefni said the rain would affect most of the companies in Jeddah,
especially importers. Flooded warehouses would result in a temporary
shortage of fruits and vegetables in the coming days, he added.
The Charity Warehouse has received so far more than 250 applications
from people who wanted to volunteer. Saleem Al-Faide, public relations
manager for the organization, said the group began distributing aids to
victims. The warehouse distributed 100,000 bottles of water and have
been coordinating with Civil Defense on where to deliver prepared food.
A resident of Bani Malik district, Abu Muhammad, stressed to Arab
News the significance of neighborly cooperation, especially when
calamities occur. “I would like to particularly thank the foreign
laborers residing in this district for their selfless assistance to the
people in our flood-ravaged neighborhood,” he said.
The Saudi Electricity Company said up to 70,000 of its subscribers
lost power on Wednesday. Fifteen emergency teams were deployed to get
power back on. The people who were still without power on Friday were
located in areas of the city that could not be accessed by company
vehicles, according to a source at the SEC office in Jeddah.
“Due to these risks, we have been instructed by the Civil Defense
Department to wait to restore power until these areas are drained of
water," he said.
On Thursday alone, the company said it received 3,000 calls from
customers who had lost power, but had to tell them that their areas had
to be drained before technicians could restores power.
The municipality’s committee in charge of dealing with rainfall has
said that it has already eliminated over 100 flood water pools in Jeddah
neighborhoods.
“There are currently more than 50 field teams and over 500 laborers
using 200 tankers, 30 pumps, and 40 various types of operating equipment
in action,” committee chairman Hisham Abideen told the Saudi Press
Agency.
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in Jeddah, the Civil Defense office in Saudi Arabia announced on Friday.
Of the 11 who died from Wednesday's heavy downpour, two were
identified as Saudis, one Filipino, two Chadians, one Egyptian, one
Turk, one Yemeni, one Bangladeshi and a Nepalese. The eleventh flood
casualty has yet to be identified.
Three people were reported by their families as missing. At least 100
people were being treated with injuries while three were in intensive
care.
All private and public schools will remain closed through February 11, the Ministry of Education said.
Buts and Blossoms International School will be closed for three days
for maintenance work because of rains and will reopen Tuesday, the
school principal said.
Major roads were reopened, but many residents in flooded districts
remained without mobile phone signals due to damages to nearby towers.
Most residents had power restored to their homes, but the Saudi
Electricity Company said Friday that 4,361 subscribers were still in the
dark. Jeddah police spokesman Colonel Misfer Al-Juaid said that police
units were dispatched to areas lacking electricity in order to prevent
looting.
Rescue helicopters maintained their search over water-logged areas
east of the Haramain Expressway and other parts of the city. The Civil
Defense office said that since Thursday night it has rescued 1,451
people with the help of its ground staff and 498 people by helicopters.
Traffic police were deployed in larger numbers to the city's major
arteries, such as Andalus and Palestine streets and King Abdullah Road,
to help the flow of traffic. Officials estimate more than 11,000 cars
were stranded in flood waters.
Saleh Hefni, president of Halawani Ikhwan factories, said his food
company’s cars and trucks in Jeddah are idle because of the rain,
affecting about 8,000 points of sale in Jeddah and Makkah.
Hefni said the rain would affect most of the companies in Jeddah,
especially importers. Flooded warehouses would result in a temporary
shortage of fruits and vegetables in the coming days, he added.
The Charity Warehouse has received so far more than 250 applications
from people who wanted to volunteer. Saleem Al-Faide, public relations
manager for the organization, said the group began distributing aids to
victims. The warehouse distributed 100,000 bottles of water and have
been coordinating with Civil Defense on where to deliver prepared food.
A resident of Bani Malik district, Abu Muhammad, stressed to Arab
News the significance of neighborly cooperation, especially when
calamities occur. “I would like to particularly thank the foreign
laborers residing in this district for their selfless assistance to the
people in our flood-ravaged neighborhood,” he said.
The Saudi Electricity Company said up to 70,000 of its subscribers
lost power on Wednesday. Fifteen emergency teams were deployed to get
power back on. The people who were still without power on Friday were
located in areas of the city that could not be accessed by company
vehicles, according to a source at the SEC office in Jeddah.
“Due to these risks, we have been instructed by the Civil Defense
Department to wait to restore power until these areas are drained of
water," he said.
On Thursday alone, the company said it received 3,000 calls from
customers who had lost power, but had to tell them that their areas had
to be drained before technicians could restores power.
The municipality’s committee in charge of dealing with rainfall has
said that it has already eliminated over 100 flood water pools in Jeddah
neighborhoods.
“There are currently more than 50 field teams and over 500 laborers
using 200 tankers, 30 pumps, and 40 various types of operating equipment
in action,” committee chairman Hisham Abideen told the Saudi Press
Agency.
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