Jeddah tragedy
The Jeddah floods remain a shocking tragedy, not simply for the citizens of Jeddah, so many of whom lost friends and loved ones in the disaster, but for the Kingdom as a whole. Such things are simply not supposed to happen in a modern city.
In the wake of the horror in which at least 124 people perished and billions of dollars of damage was done to property and infrastructure, there was an understandable angry demand that those who contributed to the catastrophe be brought to book. Almost four months on from the event, that need to know who was responsible has not lessened. Some 30 officials, both active and retired, from the Jeddah municipality, the Ministry of Water as well as employees of contracting companies have been detained, some for over 70 days while investigations continue. A dozen of them were released this week. The authorities have stressed, however, this does not mean that they have been cleared. They are likely to face travel restrictions and may yet be called back to help with the official inquiry.
This is as it should be. However, finding out who may have behaved with criminal negligence or failed to discharge their official duties in a proper manner by exercising oversight over construction and planning, is in actual fact the least of the challenge that the authorities face. The real issue is to identify the infrastructural failings that cause the calamitous flooding and set about fixing them as quickly as possible. Jeddawis need to be assured that when massive storms occur again, as meteorologists believe more than likely, there will not be further massive loss of life and extensive chaos in their city.
The investigation, therefore, has three important parts. The identification of wrongdoing, though highly relevant is the least of the issues. Punishing anyone responsible may be a warning to others not to cut corners or nod through bad plans and workmanship. But of overriding account is the need to complete a rapid audit of the city's roads and drainage systems.
Thereafter urgent public works will be needed to correct the design errors that contributed so substantially to the flooding. The cost of this is likely to be high but the corrective measures should not be delayed, even if, for instance, a contracting company contests any liability in the courts. There will also be financial distress and even heartbreak for those whose homes or businesses were constructed, against regulations in wadis. These must be moved, even if they were not affected by November's deluge. Wadis are watercourses, not development land.
And finally the emergency response services should by now be nearing the completion of a complete revision of their disaster-management plans. These should be submitted to and signed off by the authorities, after careful examination.
In a few cases during the floods, the emergency services acted with speed and efficiency. However, too often, their efforts were uncoordinated and far too little, far too late. They need to be trained and ready to handle the most extreme events.
Comments
KHALID KHAN
Mar 11, 2010 12:41
Report abuseAHAMEDRASSATH
Mar 11, 2010 14:13
Report abuseAHMED SIDDIQUI
Aug 9, 2010 01:27
Report abuse( Government of Saudi Arabia ) care for Jeddawis, then please take necessary action on this view. Allah Ejzeek Khair.