Motorists were unable to see the roads and the sidewalk because they were submerged.
“We could not use cars and buses to escape from the area because the water level was so high,” Rachail Maskwati, a Russian mother of three studying at the Global School in Hail Street, told Arab News.
“We decided to walk in the rains and pass through dirty flood water. My three children got cold and flu because of the rains. They were crying and screaming because they were hungry and afraid. IMC provided us with bed covers, pajamas and coats to keep us warm and safe.”
According to Rachail, there should be a warning system which can alert parents in advance not to send children to school if there is a heavy rain.
An Egyptian family who was visiting Sharafiya for the first time in their life in order to buy electrical equipment was also caught in the rain and floods.
“This is my first visit to the Kingdom, as my husband lives here and I live in Egypt. During this visit I didn’t like Jeddah so much, as all the districts were damaged. Once we got there the rain started to fall very heavily, so we decided to turn back,” said the wife Um Motaz, who has three children.
“He drove slowly in order to find a hotel or apartment so we could spend the night there. Finally, we took refuge in the IMC.”
She said all the restaurants and supermarkets were locked, while no food or drinking water was available, and eventually the children got very hungry and were unable to move.
However, a large number of IMC staff started distributing food, while the pharmacy reopened.
Elderly Saudi women caught in the floods also took refuge in the IMC. Um Mansour said she was forced to ask the IMC for help.
“We didn’t know how to go home. Even our mobiles were not working. We couldn’t contact our sons or daughters. I am from Taif, but I came here because I was looking to have a nice day in Jeddah with this cloudy weather. I had never expected such a catastrophe,” she said.
