The number of people killed in the collapse of a three-story building in Jeddah's Al-Sahefa District has increased to six, after the Civil Defense recovered the bodies of four Somali children at dawn Saturday. The search and rescue continued for the second consecutive day to find other survivors under the debris. The Civil Defense teams used light machinery to remove the debris. They also used a listening device initially to try to hear if anyone was alive under the rubble. Thermal cameras were also brought in. The narrow streets prevented the rescue teams from using large machinery to assist in the search. However, other light equipment was brought in from the Civil Defense's Support Center at the Old Airport. Members of the Al-Balad branch municipality had a number of workers using small machinery to lift debris from the site. Traffic policemen were seen controlling the flow of cars and the arrival of machinery and trucks to the area. Other buildings checked Ahmad Al-Ghamdi, Director of Information at the Jeddah Mayoralty, said the mayoralty's experts will inspect other houses in the area to see whether any had been affected by the collapse. Capt. Abdullah Al-Amri, Spokesman for the Civil Defense in Makkah, said the sites would be handed over to the mayoralty after all people had been cleared from the debris. Al-Amri said the three-storey building covered 200 square meters and housed Somali families. He said investigations were under way to determine the cause of the collapse. Five hospitalized The Directorate of Health Affairs in Jeddah has confirmed that 16 people were injured in the collapse. These include 10 Civil Defense personnel and eight residents. Dr. Sami Badawood, Director of Health Affairs, said five people have been hospitalized while two others were released after receiving treatment. Three people were treated at the scene and also taken to hospital. He said a working team has been formed consisting of the Directorate of Health Affairs in Jeddah, three ambulatory teams and six Red Crescent teams. Brig. Gen. Abdullah Jiddawi, Director of the Civil Defense in Jeddah, said the buildings neighboring the collapsed building have been evacuated to ensure the safety of residents. A decision would be taken later whether people could return to their homes. Cracks in building Jiddawi said the Civil Defense was gathering information on what caused the collapse. He said the collapsed building had cracks that were allegedly not treated by the owner. This provided clues to what caused the disaster. In addition, because of the scarcity of water, tenants had installed water tanks on the roof, creating an extra load on the foundation. There were 11 tanks on the roof which could have created an “overload on the weak and fragile foundation”, he said. Jiddawi said the fell almost straight down; it did not fall sideways. He said the building was not subject to engineering inspections or safety conditions because it was not higher than three storeys. However, there were stricter regulations coming to deal with all buildings in the city. Jiddawi said plans were underway to deal with some of the old buildings, specifically in Al-Balad District, to ensure proper loading, electrical wiring, warehousing and storage. Measures underway include cutting off the power supply to any building which violated safety conditions. He added that the Civil Defence has been wary of using large machines in the area, partly because of the narrow alleys, but also because of the fear that the loud sounds and impact of the large machines could cause cracks in neighboring buildings, including a part of the collapsed building which remained intact.
