Fires are disasters that occur without a warning. In most cases, natural disasters, such as earthquakes, fires and floods, have negative impacts, as they are highly stressful events.

“Fires are considered the most difficult disasters that stay in people’s memories for many years," said Abir Shaban, a psychologist working in a private clinic in Jeddah.

According to Shaban, the private school fire could cause mental and emotional disorders to the victims and induce stress and trauma, either in the short or long term.

She added, "Traumatic events can fundamentally change not only victims' way of life, but also their psychological outlook. This equally applies to natural disasters and man-made catastrophes such as war."

Shaban confirmed that returning to the location after a fire is often very difficult, especially when the victims live in close proximity to the scene where the disaster occurred. The school students who witnessed Saturday's fire will be reminded daily of the past and the event. They will always be concerned about possible accidents in the future.

The victims of the November 2009 Jeddah floods, one of the major catastrophes to hit the city in recent years, still cannot lead a normal life, as the scenes of death and misery vividly remain in their memory, Shaban said.

"Even if the immediate source of the trauma is removed, time does not necessarily heal all wounds. The survivor may, in fact, continue to suffer for many years. Children suffer a lot because of the stress they felt without having any idea on how to escape and what would happen later," she said.

Dr. Murad Saher, a psychiatrist who treated several cases after a house fire in Jeddah, confirmed that many victims suffered post-traumatic stress disorder and required supportive counseling and medication. Despite the different psychological treatments, such problem may be a lifelong one and can become worse over time.

"The obstacle many students and teachers face is resuming their activities after injury and returning to school. This could be worse in case of facial or hand burns," he said.

According to Saher, society should cooperate to help burned students. "Many burn survivors complain of feeling as though they had a disease. People should deal normally with the burned students in order to help them forget the accident and live as they did before the fire.”

According to Saher, the Health Affairs Department in cooperation with the Ministry of Education will send a team of experts to visit the burned students and their families in order to direct them how to deal with the society and how to overcome the crisis.

"Families refused to send their sons and daughters to experts to overcome their psychological suffering after the floods in Jeddah. The Ministry of Education set up a special committee to take care of the shocked students and give them lectures on how to face the disaster. I hope to increase the number of lectures and make sure that we are ready to face any natural and man-made disaster," said Saher.