Six hundred students and staff were evacuated from Elementary School 198 in Jeddah to a neighboring mosque after an electric short circuit in one of the classrooms recently.

There have been claims that the school was suffering from these electrical problems for the past two years, which has allegedly disturbed the education process and caused anxiety among students and staff.

According to Mohammed Al-Harthy, a parent, the number of incidents has increased without any solution in sight. He claimed parents have appealed repeatedly to the education department to take action.

He said representatives of the Civil Defense and Saudi Electricity Company have confirmed that the school is taking on too large an electric load for its small size and capacity.

The school has been operating in a rented facility, while the new building nearby remains under construction. According to parents, the new building was completed over six years ago, but remains closed and unprepared for the students. They called on the authorities to complete the new facility as quickly as possible.

The Civil Defense confirmed that the short circuit was the result of an excessive load. Also, the Education Department sent a team to inspect the building and prepare a report, noting that all procedures would be taken to ensure the safety of students and teachers.

Meanwhile, a fire in an electric oven resulted in the evacuation of 300 students and teachers from a girls’ school in the Khalidya district in western Tareef. The spokesman of the Education Department, Sitam Alsultani, said experts are currently inspecting and investigating all affected areas.

A similar electric short circuit took place recently at building seven of the girls’ college at Hail University, resulting in security officials evacuating all students. There were no injuries.