Civil Defense officers have rescued at least 448 Saudis and expatriates trapped in floodwaters during the past 24 hours, the department said in a statement on Thursday.

Col. Abdullah Al-Harthi, spokesman of the Civil Defense, said that 11 people have died in the floods, including seven in Riyadh, two in Arar, one in Qunfuda and one in Baha.

He said the department had received more than 6,800 calls from people who were in trouble as a result of rain and flooding.

“In the Riyadh region alone, we attended 4,980 calls on rain-related accidents and rescued 201 individuals and 115 vehicles that were swept away by floods,” he said.

The department’s offices in the Eastern Province received 1,653 calls for help, Al-Harthi said.

Officers in the region rescued 206 individuals and 138 vehicles, he said.

“We have provided shelter to 110 people after their homes were damaged by rainwaters,” the spokesman said.




In the Asir region, the department saved seven people, while 14 people were saved in the Northern Border Province and 20 in Al-Jouf.

In Baha, a 23-year-old Saudi youth died after falling into the Janabin Dam near Baljurashi.

Civil Defense teams rushed to the accident spot after receiving information about the accident but failed to save the man, who slipped into the three-meter-deep dam while taking photos with his mobile camera, said Lt. Col. Jamaan Al-Ghamdi, spokesman of the department in Baha.

He cautioned citizens and residents against bathing in dams and flood pathways. “Most accidents have taken place as a result of people ignoring our instructions,” he said.