Saturday night’s heavy downpour wreaked havoc in the Saudi capital, damaging properties and roads and creating traffic jams and power outages.

A Riyadh Civil Defense spokesman said that five individuals have been reported missing.

The heavy rain disrupted traffic in many areas, especially in the southwestern neighborhoods of Riyadh.

Civil Defense teams rescued 98 people who were trapped inside their vehicles in the worst-affected areas.

Riyadh’s skies had been cloudy since the early morning hours of Sunday and temperatures dropped to 16 degrees Celsius.

The Ministry of Education asked public schools to shut down for the day and urged people to stay indoors.

The government is setting up a disaster management center in many parts of the country, including Makkah, and is planning to close schools and evacuate people in low-lying areas.

Many houses witnessed power outages due to water leakage, which triggered short circuits.

A Filipino family in Al-Malaz along Abdul Aziz Road told Arab News that power went off at midnight and has not been restored yet. The floods also caused extensive damage to power boxes, which need replacement.

According to Col. Abdullah Al-Harthi, Civil Defense spokesman, operation centers in the capital have received 5,015 flood-related reports between Saturday night and Sunday morning, of which 4,968 were from Riyadh alone and the rest from the capital’s suburbs.

Al-Harthi pointed out that some of the most affected areas are in the southwestern neighborhoods of Riyadh.

Civil Defense teams have been mobilized to rescue people trapped in their houses. They have so far evacuated 11 people to safety and moved them into furnished apartments.

The department has also set up a special cell to evaluate the extent of damage caused by the downpour.

Al-Harthi advised citizens and residents to take precautionary measures as more rain is expected during the week. He urged citizens and residents to avoid low-lying areas prone to flooding through surface run-offs.

The official called on the public to abide by Civil Defense directives, which are disseminated through print, audiovisual and social networking media outlets.

Many insurance claims have been made by policyholders. Eyewitnesses in the capital posted pictures of flooded streets, shops and cars marooned in rainwater on various social media sites.

Weather forecasts are predicting heavy rains for the entire weekend, with the eastern part of the country likely to be the worst affected.