JEDDAH — The Jeddah Mayoralty and National Water Company have been exchanging blame for the leakage of sewage in Abraq Al-Raghama, near the Haramain Railway track, east of the city. Dirty water has been coming down from the elevated Raya district for the last six months. Ahmed Al-Zahrani, a resident of the area, said the sewage leak has damaged the environment and made the district a breeding ground for disease-carrying mosquitoes. "When we complained to the mayoralty, it blamed the NWC for the leakage," he told Okaz/Saudi Gazette. "We later approached the National Water Company, which on its part, threw the ball back on the mayoralty's court," Al-Zahrani said, while urging authorities to solve the problem immediately to avoid the spread of infectious diseases and calm the irate citizens. He feared that the reopening of schools and colleges after the long summer vacation would complicate the situation as the dirty water surrounds a number of schools in the district. The leakage has also damaged roads and obstructed smooth flow of traffic. "The sewage leak has been threatening residents of Musaed district for the past six months. It is unfortunate that neither the mayoralty nor NWC have taken any action to stop the leakage. None of them is ready to take responsibility and solve the problem," he added. Saad Al-Motairy said the sewage was flowing to their district (Musaed) from Raya district. "This has created a number of swamps in various parts of the district and they produce mosquitoes and spread infectious diseases. We have noticed the advent of contagious diseases such as dengue fever among the residents. This is alarming," he explained. He said the swamps that have collected near schools produce nasty smell and threaten the health of students and teachers. Some people are now thinking of shifting from Musaed district because of authorities' negligence in tackling the leakage issue. "I regret my decision to purchase a house in this district. We feel like we're living in an infectious disease zone," Ali Al-Ghamdi told Okaz/Saudi Gazette. He urged authorities to take quick action to solve the problem. Abdullah Al-Ghamdi said the accumulation of sewage water, creation of swamps in Musaed, has damaged its streets which in turn has a series of bumps and potholes that have damaged vehicles. He stressed the need to take legal action against the mayoralty and NWC for causing various problems to residents. "People are now living under the threat of pollution and infectious diseases," he added.
