They were brief showers that fell over the residents of Jeddah early in the week, and not much that should have concerned the residents, but it wasn’t long before it was evident that the aftermath of these rains was becoming more of the same as in times gone by.
The first casualties were many of the resurfaced roads that had been dug up throughout the city to install massive flood and sewage pipes and which were supposed to make our lives easier. Where the repavement had taken place, there were sudden trenches as the ground caved in, dangerously low in some areas to cause serious injury to humans and untold misery to wallets of many car owners, as front ends were quickly being re-engineered into different forms.
And as the day wore on, large pools of water collected making many streets impenetrable. Neighborhoods were isolated for some time as residents found it difficult to navigate through a foot or more of still water. Residents have been so used to similar scenes in the past that there was a somewhat sanguine feeling about all of this. Only this time there were interruptions of vocal indignation.
Ahmed, a homeowner in a flooded area, suggests that all the drainage works we were seeing in full swing across the city were a sham. “It is to appease the citizen that something is being done, while in reality they are just digging roads and laying down pipes that lead to nowhere. There have been enough complaints by residents of this city in the past on the inadequacy of our floodwater system, and this activity was a thing to pacify us. And obviously, if a brief shower can cause this effect, can you just imagine what some heavy rainfall would have done. I want to know what excuse the authorities responsible will use this time. Maybe they will attribute it to an act of God as an easy way out. This has been the way to excuse past failures.”
Jassem, a native of Dhahran in the Eastern Province and a recent transplant to Jeddah, finds the whole situation unusual. “I cannot believe it. A short shower and we end up like this. And with such a massive project in process. Give it to the Americans. While they were setting up ARAMCO, they were also heavily involved in setting up the infrastructure of the surrounding regions. And besides building proper roads, they also managed to set up an effective drainage system. We didn’t experience anything like you have here with even heavier rainfalls. It’s time to stop pretending; admit that we do not have the know-how to set up this city on the right course. And while we are at it, let a foreign company set up the water distribution system from the desalination plants to the residents of this city, to avoid the recurrent fiasco over the water shortage.”
Sarah, a mother, was visibly upset when her children failed to make it to school the morning of the showers. “The car broke down about two kilometers from the house and my children ages seven and nine had to return home walking and wading in dirty pools of water. When the children reached home, the driver told me that there were many other motorists with similar problems. Imagine, the generation of the future and we have to expose them to such horrible situations. I had to practically disinfect both my children to make sure they wouldn’t pick up some awful skin disease from swimming through dirty water. Now who will admit responsibility for what happened?”
Ali from the Sudan rolls his eyes when he says that it “has been practically a week since the showers and there are stagnant pools of water all over my neighborhood”. He is visibly worried, and as a father of a two-year-old and his wife 8 months pregnant, he is concerned about the diseases that usually accompany these rainfalls. “Who is going to protect us against this dingoo (dengue) fever that is spreading? These dirty ponds of water are attracting mosquitoes that are the chief culprits in the spread of the disease. What can I do to protect my family’s safety? Should I move to another neighborhood?”
Legitimate worries expressed by concerned residents. The question however remains. Who is responsible for this mess, and what is going to be done about it?
