JEDDAH: Last week’s sandstorm knocked down light posts, street signs and trees in various places around Jeddah, according to a municipal official.
Officials announced yesterday that they have completed cleanup efforts, but some residents resorted to hiring their own cleanup workers and trucks rather than waiting around for the municipality.
In Al-Sabeel district of old Jeddah, a tree fell onto a parked vehicle and remained there for days. The owner of the vehicle was not found for an interview, but his neighbors said that he had called the municipality’s emergency number many times with no success.
The car remained under the tree for almost four days until the owner decided to pay from his own pocket to remove the tree, according to Ahmad Salem, a resident of Al-Sabeel district who knows the vehicle’s owner.
Residents of Al-Rawdah district, a few kilometers away, saw a fallen tree blocking one of the entrances to the neighborhood.
“We’ve called the municipality many times, but no one came to our assistance,” said Saeed Al-Qadi, a local resident. “In the end we collected money and hired a couple of workers and a truck to remove the tree.”
Trees may have been put on the back burner as city officials worked to repair more important things since the Dec. 22 storm: Street lights.
Brig. Issam Mominah, head of the General Directorate of Security and Safety, said the fallen light polls and signs have caused a number of traffic accidents in several parts of the city.
He said his department reported the damage to municipality officials who consequently arrived to fix the damage — at least faster than they have come to remove trees.
