According to a resident of Buraidah city, there was water standing in front of houses and water accumulation on the roads in Riyadh as well. Heavy rainfalls in various regions, including the province of Al Qassim, the capital Riyadh, and Madinah, resulted in flooded streets and authorities announcing the closure of schools in several areas.
As per a report by an international news agency, Saudi authorities closed schools on Wednesday in several regions, including Al Qassim region, after heavy rainfall, which set a record for the most rain in a single day in certain areas. A resident of the central city of Buraidah in the Al Qassim region mentioned that rainfall started at noon and continued for seven hours, causing water to accumulate in front of houses, reaching up to 10 cm high. The thunderstorm was terrifying, and as lightning struck, the whole city was lit up.
The National Meteorological Center issued a red alert for the eastern province, Riyadh and Madinah regions, warning of heavy rainfall in these areas. Authorities have instructed the closure of schools and the shift to online classes in the eastern province and Riyadh.
The Medina Education Department released an image on their social media website showing workers repairing electricity and air conditioning systems and clearing water from schools. Despite water pooling in certain areas of Riyadh’s roads on Wednesday, traffic continued to flow smoothly.
It is important to note that Gulf countries have been experiencing heavy rainfall in the past two weeks, and now this pattern has extended to Saudi Arabia, where heavy rains occur frequently during this season, leading to water drainage issues in densely populated cities.
The coastal city of Jeddah in Saudi Arabia faces annual water drainage problems due to inadequate infrastructure, with residents complaining about this issue during the rainy season. In 2009, Jeddah experienced the worst flood, resulting in the loss of 123 lives, and two years later, another 10 people lost their lives in a similar incident.