A second meeting, also to be chaired by Prince Naif, will be held on Tuesday on the heels of the emergency meeting.
“Tuesday’s meeting will finalize the results of our discussions on Sunday,” said Prince Naif in a statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency on Saturday.
“Before that, we will inspect all flood-affected areas of Jeddah and its suburbs to have a close look at the extent of damage, learn the causes and find ways to repair them at the earliest possible time, in addition to laying out effective solutions so that such calamities do not recur,” Prince Naif said.
“We will also submit a complete report to the king and the crown prince after that,” he added.
Meanwhile, round-the-clock rescue efforts following the flooding are drawing to a close.
Gen. Mohammed Al-Qarni of the Civil Defense confirmed that the death toll currently stands at 11. He also stated that out of the 114 people injured in the floods, only 14 remain in hospital.
On a brighter note, Al-Qarni said the Civil Defense has found accommodation for displaced families.
“We have managed to secure accommodation for 1,700 families at furnished apartments and hotels across the city,” he said.
“Now it is time to begin assessing damage and start looking at homes, cars and businesses affected by the floods,” said Al-Qarni.
He added that the Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Defense have joined forces to work on assessing damage.
“There are currently 30 groups from both ministries touring Jeddah and assessing damage,” Al-Qarni said.
Insurance companies are already cooperating with the authorities to assess damage to personal and commercial properties in the city.
“We are currently working closely with the ministries and the compensation committee, and looking at our own policyholder’s coverage. We are beginning to get an initial idea of how much damage there is,” said a source at a major insurance company in Jeddah.
The source said that he has heard that around 15,000 cars were damaged in the flood, but could not confirm the figure until a full assessment is carried out.
After the November 2009 floods, the General Court in Jeddah ruled that SR116 million in compensation should be paid to families who lost one or more members in the flood. The court ruling followed a directive by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah to pay SR1 million to each family that lost a member.
Damages to businesses amounted to SR1 billion with 11,000 buildings and cars destroyed, according to official statistics.
