EP designates sites to be used as earthquake shelters

In the wake of the two earthquakes that hit the Eastern Province recently, the region’s secretariat has allocated a number of shelter sites that will be handed over to the Civil Defense Department for emergency evacuations during natural disasters.
Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Elsafaan, media spokesman of the Eastern Province, said that the secretariat designated shelters in Dammam, Alkhobar, Dhahran and Qatif, adding, “Saudi Aramco established a safe refuge on the Dammam-Riyadh highway in case of a natural disaster or emergency.”
In addition, Prince Mansour bin Miteb, minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs, approved the allocation of two shelters in Buqaiq and Nuayriah that are 90,000 and 40,000 square meters respectively.
Other locations were designated as well in several cities and governorates.
“Joint committees have chosen suitable locations to be handed over subsequently to the Ministry of Finance to be equipped with the necessary safety requirements,” said Brig. Ali bin Saad Al-Qahtani, spokesman of the Civil Defense Department in the Eastern Province.
Citizens in the region have expressed concern due to the absence of some governmental bodies, especially the Civil Defense and the Health Ministry in particular during the earthquakes, requesting the authorities to take precautionary measures in the event of a similar natural occurrence.