The Saudi Environmental Association (SEA) has held the Jeddah Mayoralty responsible for the death of Fatima Al-Saab who drowned in the sea off Jeddah's Corniche earlier this month, saying that the location of the drain aperture was in violation of regulations. A SEA statement Monday said the opening of the channel should have been located further out to sea, and added that other authorities and individuals were also at fault for draining sewage into the area. “The mayoralty must move the drain out to sea and halt the channeling of sewage to avoid similar accidents,” the statement said. “The mayoralty will be responsible for anyone falling into the drain.” The SEA said the drain was the largest in Jeddah, pumping out over 5,000 cubic meters of rainwater and groundwater per hour. The statement said that private sewage drains were present near the sea and described them as the joint responsibility of the water company and the mayoralty. Fatima was thought to have found herself in difficulties after swimming in the prohibited area where rainwater drains and sewage channels pump out into the sea at high velocity. Investigators have also postulated that she may have slipped on one of the channels in the shallow waters. Fatima's body was found 12 days after her disappearance trapped between rocks 90m beneath the surface of the sea.
