JEDDAH FLOOD AFTERMATH: CLEANING UP THE CITY AMID

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 JEDDAH 000488 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/ARP, NEA/PPD, CA/OCS/ACS-NEA E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/19/2019 TAGS: AEMR ASEC CASC ECON KPAO PGOV SA SENV SUBJECT: JEDDAH FLOOD AFTERMATH: CLEANING UP THE CITY AMID CALLS TO CLEAN OUT THE GOVERNMENT REF: A. A. JEDDAH 465 ¶B. B. JEDDAH 456 ¶C. C. JEDDAH 457 ¶D. D. JEDDAH 460 JEDDAH 00000488 001.2 OF 004 Classified By: Consul General Martin R. Quinn for reasons 1.4 (b) and ( d) ¶1. (SBU) Summary: Jeddah officials report 121 dead and 39 missing in the November 25 flash flood that devastated the eastern part of the city, although the public believes the actual toll is much higher and one contact accused the SAG of suppressing the true figures. Most of the city now appears unscathed and even the hardest hit areas look much better than two weeks ago. Government officials and private volunteers continue searching for victims, cleaning flood-damaged areas, and aiding survivors. There have been some complaints of inadequate Government help -- especially for non-Saudis. Some government departments claimed they are assisting all flood victims, including foreigners, without prejudice, while a high-level civil defense official told the press that illegal expatriates will not receive compensation and will be deported if caught. Some illnesses (including 10 cases of dengue fever) have been reported, but the government is working to avoid epidemics, checking water supplies for contamination and spraying insecticide to kill mosquitoes. ¶2. (C) To prevent future catastrophes, the government is identifying buildings on flood plains and has banned (re)construction on these natural water pathways. The municipality has reinforced and lowered the water level of a sewage containment area that threatened to overflow and flood Jeddah with raw sewage, although the city still lacks adequate waste treatment facilities and drainage systems. Most Jeddawis are blaming the catastrophe on government mismanagement and corruption, and some opponents of the Al Saud have capitalized on the flood to call for political reforms. The government has so far handled the crisis to avoid empowering its opponents -- offering generous compensation to Saudi victims, privately investigating the causes of the flood, and setting up a hotline to report corruption -- while prohibiting mosques from criticizing authorities. End summary. RUMORS SWIRL OF UNCOUNTED VICTIMS ¶3. (C) Three weeks after flash floods struck Jeddah, the official death toll stands at 121 and the number of missing has dropped to 39. Jeddawis have speculated the actual death toll is much higher because of uncounted deaths, such as unconfirmed reports that 20 doctors and nurses were killed at King Abdulaziz University hospital, and perhaps 40 to 100 victims were trapped in a large hole into which cars were swept by raging waters. Rumors have also circulated of thousands drowned at a supposed underground prison (originally said to be in the Quwaizah area, now said to be near the Old Airport) perhaps belonging to the intelligence services (mubahith) and holding suspected Al Qaeda sympathizers. Former Arab News reporter Hassan Hatrash (protect) charged the published casualty figures have been underestimated because of government suppression of the press. Hatrash said he spoke with a friend in the civil defense force the day after the flood and heard the death toll was already up to 1,400 but the civil defense officer claimed the government had suppressed that number. Jeddah Governor Prince Mishal bin Majed has instructed all hospitals in the city to report any flood-related deaths and bodies released for burial before official recording of deaths began. The Civil Defense has asked families of missing people to undergo DNA testing to help identify the deceased. MOST OF THE CITY RECOVERED ¶4. (U) Eleven search teams including dogs and divers continue to look for victims, rescuing one survivor who had been trapped beneath debris of a collapsed building and recovering JEDDAH 00000488 002.2 OF 004 several more bodies. The municipal government has focused on pumping water from the streets and cleaning up the city, and most areas now appear unscathed. Harder-hit districts still show signs of destruction but look much better than a week ago, when mud coated the first floors of buildings and fly-covered piles of debris and mud-covered furniture lined the roads. Most of the smashed cars and trash piles had been cleared despite a lack of dumpsters; the manager of the Jeddah Department of Sanitation told reporters that 5,000 dumpsters were lost in the flood and replacing them would take time. King Abdulaziz University, which was badly damaged in the flood, has partially reopened, although its president told Al-Madina that the disaster has taken the university "back to square one." SOME ILLNESSES, NO EPIDEMICS ¶5. (U) The government has also worked to prevent the outbreak of epidemic diseases. Although residents of the flood-ravaged areas have reported cases of flu, fever, diarrhea, and skin problems, no massive public health issues have emerged. The director of Health Affairs in Jeddah told the press that the municipality has deployed mobile medical teams and clinics to flood-hit areas and refugee centers and has distributed leaflets on possible health risks to flood survivors. The city has also hired specialist teams to monitor environmental hazards such as contamination of water storage tanks in these areas; so far samples of desalinated water have tested negative for all epidemic diseases. As part of the municipality's plan to prevent the outbreak of water-borne illnesses, employees have sprayed pesticides on the stagnant pools of muddy water that are breeding grounds for mosquitoes that spread dengue fever, although as of December 19, ten new cases of dengue fever have been reported. GENEROUS AID -- EXCEPT TO ILLEGAL EXPATS -- AND SOME PROFITEERING ¶6. (U) The Ministry of Social Affairs, according to Al-Madina Arabic daily, will provide SR 20 million ($5.3 million) to Jeddah charities that are aiding thousands of flood victims daily. Evacuated families are being housed in temporary shelters, hotels, and furnished apartments normally used by Haj pilgrims, with payment guaranteed by the Ministry of Finance. Thousands of volunteers, most young people, have volunteered their time to assist flood victims, from distributing food to providing free counseling services for traumatized survivors. Donations have poured in from the private sector (90 percent from individuals, 10 percent from companies, according to one published estimate) -- although some victims have complained that the food delivered by volunteers had passed its expiration date and was not fit for consumption. Other survivors told the nongovernmental National Society for Human Rights (NSHR) and reporters that they had not received any aid. ¶7. (U) The director of the NSHR's Makkah branch reportedly told the civil defense officials the group is concerned about "the disparity between Saudi citizens and foreigners in the domain of accommodation and sustenance," but added that the director general of the Civil Defense, General Saad Al-Tuwaijri, assured NSHR the government is providing accommodation to all flood victims without prejudice, as directed by King Abdullah. On December 19, the Director of Civil Defense in Makkah Region, General Adel Al-Zamzami, told Saudi Gazette that "illegal expatriates are not included in the flood compensation" and "will not have any rights. If we catch them we will transfer them immediately to the Passports Department to deport them." ¶8. (SBU) To ensure donations reach victims, Makkah Governor Prince Khalid Al-Faisal recently ordered the opening of a special account under the Governorate's supervision to collect donations for flood survivors. Originally the public was warned to give only to licensed, officially recognized organizations, such Al Bir Society, a well-respected charity for orphans. (Note: The Governor's action followed an Al JEDDAH 00000488 003.2 OF 004 Arabiya report alleging the director of Al Bir -- former Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI) Chairman Sheikh Saleh Al Turki -- had transferred SR 1 billion ($267 million) from the charity to his company's account. Al Bir's treasurer and current JCCI Deputy Chairman Mazen Batterjee refuted the allegation, saying the fund transfer was actually an investment made four years ago that was approved by the Ministry of Social Affairs, which oversees the charity. End note.) Other reports have surfaced of individuals attempting to profit from the tragedy, with landlords hiking rents and some filing fraudulent claims for compensation. The SAG has promised the family of each flood victim SR 1 million ($267,000). One well-heeled Jeddawi woman, joking about the situation to her husband, cracked, "Dear, let's go drown our dog so we can apply for compensation and buy a more expensive pedigree breed." (RE)BUILDING ON FLOOD PLAIN BANNED ¶9. (U) The national Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs has directed all municipalities across the Kingdom to survey their jurisdictions to determine if any residential areas are located on wadis (dry riverbeds),where rain water concentrates, causing flash floods. Some experts have called for the government to halt construction in these low-level areas and water pathways to avoid a repeat of last month's floods. According to Okaz, the Encroachment Committee of the Jeddah Mayor's office has banned repairs and reconstruction of flood-damaged buildings on flash flood routes in order to restore natural water routes to the sea. Jeddah authorities began issuing permits for residential construction in these natural rainwater pathways in 1974, according to Al-Hayat. Some construction engineers have publicly predicted that in the future Jeddah will expand in the north, rather than to the south or east, because of geographical features that invite flooding in those areas. PREVENTING A FLOOD OF SEWAGE ¶10. (U) To prevent a 17-kilometer wide sewage containment area (known as Misk Lake) from overflowing and inundating the city with sewage, government officials have implemented a variety of measures. The municipality has constructed a series of dams so that if one dam is breached the others will hold and protect the city from flooding. It has also constructed a pipeline above ground from Misk Lake to a floodwater channel inside the city to carry sewage should the lake's embankments collapse. Other steps have decreased the lake's water level from 14 to nine feet. Some effluent was released from Misk Lake, although city officials denied earlier reports that untreated waste was dumped directly into the sea. Tankers that traditionally dumped sewage directly into Misk Lake have been diverted to another area, although drivers have publicly complained that the site is inadequate and nearby residents pelted the delivery trucks with rocks. With an estimated 2,000 sewage trucks seeking new dumping grounds for the contents of tens of thousands of individual building septic systems, reports have surfaced of illicit sewage dumping. ¶11. (SBU) City officials have said the municipality wants to empty Misk Lake within a year, but in the absence of new sewage treatment plants the available options are very limited. Among the ideas being discussed are discharging the waste into the Red Sea (which would further damage the coral reefs near Jeddah) and treating the waste and using the processed water to restore the local aquifer, which some fear would contaminate the groundwater. The city plans to build pipelines to connect Misk Lake to the Kouraimah treatment plant in the south, which is already overloaded according to press reports. Perhaps to reassure a public skeptical of local capabilities and to respond to calls for international advice, the local government has sought the help of foreign experts; photos of the international team surveying Misk Lake were prominently featured in local newspapers. JEDDAH 00000488 004.2 OF 004 CALLS FOR POLITICAL CHANGES ¶12. (SBU) While the government carries out these corrective and preventative measures, the fact-finding committee formed by King Abdullah continues its investigation into the reasons for the unprecedented devastation (12,000 properties and 11,000 cars damaged and more than 25,000 people displaced) caused by the five inches of rainfall. Although a handful of bloggers have attributed the catastrophe to God's punishment for sins, most Jeddawis blame the tragedy on government mismanagement and corruption. Well before the flood, Jeddah contacts on the Municipal Council told us that money appropriated for a city-wide drainage system years ago had been pocketed by a high-level official. Saudi officials appear willing to acknowledge corruption is a problem -- up to a point. The Ministry of Interior has set up a special hotline for the public to report corruption, and the Shoura Council is reportedly seeking the establishment of an Anti-Corruption Commission. But the Ministry of Islamic Affairs has cautioned those delivering Friday mosque sermons to focus on "consoling bereaved families" and avoid "addressing the Mayor's office or any other authority." COMMENT: RATIONALE FOR REFORM ¶13. (C) Comment. Some Saudi citizens are citing the flood as a rationale for political reform. In a statement released to the media, the unrecognized Riyadh-based Saudi Civil and Political Rights Association, formed in October 2009, attributed the Jeddah flood disaster to corruption by royal family members who "occupy top government positions and compete to rob public funds and accumulate illegitimate wealth." The group demanded limits on the role of princes and the right to elect representatives to a "national assembly which can watch, monitor and evaluate the services of all government agencies." The government is unlikely to allow elements hostile to the ruling family to capitalize on the tragedy. The SAG is handling the flood in a way that does not empower its opponents: forming a government commission headed by two princes to investigate the causes of the devastation and report to the king privately, offering generous compensation to Saudi victims, and taking measured steps to address citizens' concerns about corruption. End comment. POSTSCRIPT: MORE RAIN OVERNIGHT ... ¶14. (U) Postscript: The rains struck again overnight, December 22-23, dropping an additional 10 mm. on the beleagured residents of Jeddah. There was some flooding, worst in the south of the city, but nowhere as extensive as on November 25 when 90-140 mm. fell over the area during a period of six hours. Tuesday afternoon, King Abdulaziz University and local schools sent students home early, having received an accurate weather forecast warning of more rain. Today's Saudi papers carried photos of cars plowing through water up to their headlights as "flood panic" once again threatened to grip Jeddawis. City officials moved quickly to reassure the public. The overnight rain proved to be the result of thunderstorms normal at this time of year along the Red Sea. End postscript. QUINN