RIYADH, 24 July — An unprecedented snowstorm has blitzed a hill resort in the southern Asir province, blocking roads and leaving 75 picnickers hurt in the ensuing panic, a newspaper reported yesterday.
Al-Madinah daily said police, Civil Defense and paramedic teams rushed to the rescue of thousands of people visiting Asir national park, near the summit of the Kingdom’s highest mountain, Jebel Sawdah, which reaches 2,910 meters (9,600 feet).
Twenty-five of the injured were taken to the town’s medical center while others were given first aid, it said, showing photographs of cars, roads and fields covered in snow. None were seriously hurt.
Saudi Arabia is one of the world’s most arid countries and contains the Rub Al-Khali desert, or Empty Quarter. Summer temperatures soar above 50 degrees Celsius (122 Fahrenheit). Many Saudis escape the scorching heat of summer by taking holidays in the southern mountains bordering Yemen. (AN)
