JEDDAH: A drizzle in some parts of Jeddah evoked different reactions in the city population on Wednesday.
While people living in neighborhoods to the east of Haramain Expressway panicked and started to pack up to get out as fast as they could, many youths from other districts of the city rushed to the flood-hit areas hoping to offer any possible help.
Although authorities assured the terrified people there was nothing to worry about, particularly those around the sewage lake, the people preferred to go away and stay with their relatives living in safer locations in Jeddah or other towns. The Civil Defense said it provided apartments to 10,000 flood victims until Tuesday.
Meanwhile, a heavy downpour on Tuesday in Bahra, a town between Jeddah and Makkah, did not cause any damage, according to Civil Defense sources. Some people had to be evacuated from the path of floodwaters.
Makkah Mayor Osama Al-Bar said the municipality has been striving to keep the network of rainwater drainage working properly to avoid any possible flood in the area.
A statement from the director of Health Affairs in Jeddah said the department has converted the Al-Salamah health center into an emergency center that would work 24 hours a day. The center with 45 doctors and other technical staff will receive emergency cases any time of day and night. The statement added that the health centers in Safa and Al-Hamra districts would be open until midnight.
Medical teams have also been visiting the buildings where the flood victims are put up to offer necessary medical help. While psychiatrists accompanying the team offer trauma treatment to the victims, other specialists give them preventive medicines against likely infections and other diseases.
