by P A Hameed - Padubidri
Daijiworld Media Network - Saudi Arabia

Riyadh, Dec 29: Ever since the occurrence of flashflood-11/25 in Jeddah rocked the kingdom, a question has frequently been bugging the minds of Riyadh people: 

What will be the fate of the people, if it rains in Riyadh for around five to six hours is a common worry and needs to be given serious consideration and focus without cold-shouldering the same. An assessment of the city’s real growth become obvious when shortfalls lounged in its bottom gets adequately addressed. In its absence, it will invite more disasters rather than delights; more losses than benefits and more problems than solutions. Eventually, the blood and flesh of dead humans will become bedrocks for restructuring the ‘reckless growth’ in the days to come. 

No doubt, the capital city has been on the anguard of rapid developments ever before in its literal sense. Roads, communication networks, transports, buildings, schools, colleges and universities and other infrastructures are being effectuated on a faster pace without letup. Some areas are embryonic to be very high-tech and futuristic with almost all amenities to satisfy the national and international customers. Free internet link zone powered by satellite has really added value to the meaning of development. 

Few areas of works have been given a facelift with too much refurbishment to make it elegant and attractive. Public amusement parks, mind-boggling shopping malls, children’s toylands, skyscraping buildings and ladies parks have become abundant sources of the public utilities and gratifications. In fact, every pooling of resources into the line of infrastructures in each step will gradually lead to development of that region. However, it should not be difficult for the concerned officials or departments including contractors to pinpoint some of the critical negative points, roofed in their actions.

Actually, the people always welcome and have no apprehension for any progress in the city, but they fear for the inadequacy of some basic cautions and deliveries in this regard. Lack of drainage systems and frequent excavations on the roads as well as main centers will of course, get to artificial flood and posing danger. We hardly or inadequately find sewage system in the city as it is getting expanded to a greater extent. No scientific sufficiency is seemed to be attributed to set up the system. Routes of waterway or passages that enable for the smooth flowing of rainwater have no places here. 

Rains in Riyadh last year and also around two-three weeks ago for about an hour caused a lot of mess on the roads and streets. We have seen some gutter channels getting overflowed and spitting out their stinky wastages on the public roads causing roadblocks. Besides, the repeated works of digging up roads almost everywhere on the main streets and alleyways taking a long time has turned to be nuisance in Riyadh. Deep and long-cut roads sizing around 15-20 feet in depth at several places like Rawdah, Hail-al-Wazar’ah, Olaya, Abdullah bin Rasheed Street, Exit 9 and 10 and so on, are always giving an open-invitation for the people to encounter the consequential quandaries. Moreover, due to this some vehicles too have plunged into them, posing a constant threat to the people as well.

In an incident that took place recently at Rowdah (Hafsa-Bint-Omar Street), a truck belonging to Fahad Co Ltd. was parked to load the mud taken from the site that was dug up which was beside the road. The road surface collapsed due to the fragility steeping the truck into the cave-like ditch. The vehicle’s rear-side was completely stuck in it. Luckily, no one was present on the site as it was a lunch time. People, who saw the scene, were seen complaining against the turtle-pace of works which has been in progress since two months.

It is really annoying that the work-area has become a risky spot for the public, vehicles adjacent buildings and shops. The side-barriers and roadblocks along with detour signs are set up, but no one can turn down that it will weaken the strength of the road every time they undertake a drilling activity with earth movers. These kind of abysses will be more than enough to create flashflood in case of downpour in Riyadh, and immediate action should be taken by the concerned to see it to be completed as soon as possible before the things get bad as there is indication of rain at any moment,” said people in the group. 

A shopkeeper in super market, which is very clos to the area said:-“We may be the first to be victimized if the side-edge of the deep opening gets collapses due to its delicacy or cloudburst. We always feel as if the whole building is vibrating due to the continuous drudging of the undergrounds. Further, there is a considerable decrease in our daily business. Many customers, who used to park their vehicle in front of our shop and buy stuffs, are not showing up now because of the works. However, we fear more of the imminent danger than the loss in business,” he added. 

Above grievances are just live samples that are being faced by many people in the city. However, the problems took a concrete shape after the devastated flashflood in Jeddah. Assumption of the low-volume of rainfall in the kingdom and improper management of the outcome if flood occurs, will certainly lead to cataclysm that will result in loss of lives and properties. Long pending works, repeated unscientific drudging of the earth’s surface, furrows and holes on the road resulted in obstruction to rainwater route, deposit of garbage at un-specified locality, potholes kept without proper sealing that has contributed to synthetic deluge that will definitely cause the whole town and city pulverized like Jeddah. 

The responsible persons, in charge of such works, may get away from their duties saying that flood is beyond human control. However, they cannot escape easily from their sheer responsibilities and also utter failure in managing and fixing all those flaws that impact awfully. ‘Due care’ is an important obligation in any work to be undertaken and performed. Contrarily, all those concerned are undoubtedly will be held accountable for their gross slip-ups for zooming the lives and properties to doom. That is why, the recent order, by Custodian of the two holy mosques, HRH King Abdullah, to probe the situation that led to the deluge in Jeddah, becomes truly valued in order to make the responsible persons alert and watchful in future and to cause the guilty to be liable for punishment.