Padang Arafah (ANTARA News) - Heavy rain which fell in Jeddah, Mecca and the Arafah plains, Saudi Arabia, on Wednesday afternoon (Nov 25) claimed 24 vlives, and created a number of problems for residents and local authorities.

Jeddah Governor Prince Mishaal bin Majid immediately ordered the establishment of an emergency control center to monitor the latest developments in the impact of the natural disaster, a Saudi news agency reported on Thursday.

However, the disaster caused by the heavy rains seemed not have affected ongoing hajj pilgrimage activity , especially the main ritual, "Wuquf" (offering prayers in standing position) in the Arafah plains and Mina as people had feared.

The heavy rainfall in Jeddah lasted for more than two hours and the preciptiation was almost two-thirds of the amount of rain for the whole year.

In Al-Abraq Raghama district, some residents climbed to the roofs of their houses to avoid flooding, as drainage systems in all parts of the city could not hold the abnormal loads.

The Jeddah city civil defense unit provided rubber boats to help residents who were marooned on the roofs of their houses, while helicopters watched and monitored from the air.

The heavy rains which fell when hajj pilgrims began moving to the Arafah plains to prepare for the Wuquf also caused traffic disruptions.

Dozens of cars were stuck on the road connecting Jeddah with Mecca and the Arafah plains in Sulaimaniah district, about 11 kilometers outside Jeddah city, because flood waters on the roads became currents that washed away all vehicles.

Thousands of vehicles, most of which carried would-be pilgrims to the Arafah plains were stuck in traffic so that some went back to Jeddah or made a detour requiring about seven to eight hours from Jeddah to Mecca or the Arafah plains or a distance of only about 70km.

In addition, several districts in Jeddah city also experienced electrical blackouts.(*)

Editor: Aditia Maruli
COPYRIGHT © 2012

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