Body count hits 20 as rains continue , Saudi

With the retrieval of the body of a worker in the Baha province, the kingdom-wide death toll in the rain and floods of the past few days has risen to 20. Early yesterday morning, Civil Defense personnel found the body of an Asian worker who was reported missing at the Wadi Al-Mazra. “Civil Defense divers found the missing man’s body under the murky flood waters where visibility was extremely poor,” Baha Civil Defense spokesman Lt. Col. Jaman Al-Ghamdi said. He said the body is being kept at the King Fahd Hospital. Regarding the three missing Yemeni workers of the Aqiq road project, Al-Ghamdi said: “Fifteen divers are still exploring the floor of the Aqiq Dam, where the water level is fast rising is only 20cm below the red mark.” He said that some spillways of the dam will have to be opened to avoid waters submerging nearby valleys. “Sirens will be sounded to warn people not to go near any valley near the dam, nor drive along or go for picnicking in those areas after the spillways are opened,” he added. He warned people against swimming in the stagnant waters formed by rains.   The other deaths reported included five people who drowned in Baha, three each in Aflaj, Al-Kharj and Kalakh, two in Hawiyyah, and one each in Madinah, Majamaa, Hariq and Quwaiea, and Wadi Tarj in Beesha. Efforts are under way to trace four missing people in Baha and Hail. Heavy rainfall was reported in Baha, Turbah and Taif yesterday. As of noon yesterday, the Civil Defense Council said it had rescued 641 people, provided shelters to 894 and received 3,823 distress calls. In the Northern Border province, Civil Defense teams rescued a father and his child stranded in the midst of floodwater on Wednesday. Asir Gov. Prince Faisal bin Khaled visited the Wadi Tablah dam and assured Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah that people are safe after a breach in the earthen dam on Wednesday following heavy rains in the region. The prince also saw the resulting damages in the nearby villages and demanded an immediate report on the reason why the concrete dam under construction over the past six years close to the collapsed dam is still lagging. No one was injured in the dam collapse. Source: ArabNews