A number of the wilayats witnessed heavy rains and the flow of wadis in the past few days, which caused material damage as a result of water entering into homes. Some families were reported to be stuck in their homes while some were stuck in their vehicles.
The Civil Defence and Ambulance Authority has said that no loss of life is reported on Monday, in the aftermath of heavy rains and overflowing of wadis. The authority has warned that it would take legal action against people who take risks (by braving wadis) or endanger the lives of others.
The teams of the authority in South Al Batinah Governorate are currently working to open roads by removing debris and extending full support to citizens, residents and visitors.
The rescue teams acted on 12 reports of vehicles getting stuck in wadis in the governorates of North Al Batinah, Al Dakhiliyah, Al Dhahirah and Al Buraimi. In the process, they rescued 13 people who were stranded in wadis and reported that all are in good health.
Cumulus clouds continue to overcast the skies of Al Hajar Mountains and adjoining areas on Tuesday, with chances of moderate to heavy rains causing wadis to overflow.
In South Al Batinah, especially the wilayats of Rustaq and Al Awabi, there is widespread damage to properties as a result of water entering homes and farms, while a number of cars were washed away by the flow of wadis. Electricity, water and telephone services were also affected. However, the authorities concerned began early in the morning, on Tuesday, to restore basic services and the work is progressing at an accelerated pace.
RESCUE TEAMS
The rescue teams dealt with 12 reports regarding people getting stuck in vehicles in wadis in North Al Batinah, Al Dakhiliyah, Al Dhahirah and Al Buraimi governorates, and 13 were
rescued from wadis, and all are in good health.
On Tuesday, work is under way to restore services in the affected wilayats of Al Awabi and Rustaq in the Governorate of South Al Batinah, which witnessed heavy rains accompanied by strong winds for hours. The torrential rains and wadis caused damage to private property and roads, most notably cutting off Al Awabi and Nakhl road.
STATE OF ALERT
Col Mohammed bin Awad al Shanfari, Police Commander of South Al Batinah Governorate, said in a statement to ONA that the ROP and other key sectors concerned with emergency management in the Governorate of South Al Batinah have raised the state of alert and readiness, to reduce the damage caused by torrential wadis and their entry into the homes of some citizens.
He pointed out that the police patrols alerted all visitors to move away from wadis as water levels rose. Traffic movement was cut off on the road linking the wilayats of Nakhl and Al Awabi due to the collapse of a part of the lanes of the road adjacent to the wadi stream in Falaj Bani Khuzir area. Coordination has been made with the General Directorate of Police Aviation to put helicopters on standby to deal with emergencies.
For his part, Hamoud bin Mohammed al Mantheri, coordinator of the relief and shelter sector in the National Committee for Emergency Management, confirmed that three shelter centres were kept ready in the wilayats of Al Awabi and Rustaq.
“Heavy rains and overflowing wadis caused some damage, including their entry into homes and some families were stuck in their homes. There are some areas which were affected like Falaj Bani Khuzir and Wadi Bani Kharus in the Wilayat of Al Awabi, and city centre and in Wadi Bani Ghafer in the Wilayat of Rustaq. Shelters are ready to receive citizens and residents,” he said.
Dr Ali bin Amer al Shaithani, Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology for Communications and Information Technology, accompanied by a number of officials from the ministry, visited the affected areas to ensure immediate rehabilitation of roads hit by heavy rains in the Governorate of South Al Batinah, to facilitate movement of vehicles.
A number of governorates in Oman witnessed rainfall of varying intensity, accompanied by active winds, which led to the flow of a number of wadis.
In Al Dakhiliyah Governorate, rainfall in the Wilayat of Nizwa led to the flow of many wadis such as Al Hijri, Al Musala, Al Rahba, Sumait, Al Suwehriya, Kuma and Wadi Al Mu’aidin.
In Al Jabal Al Akhdhar, Wadi Al Manakher and Wadi Seq are overflowing. Heavy rains in the Wilayat of Samayil led to the flow of Wadi Al Aq and Wadi Bani Rawaha. The rains also led to the flow of Wadi Al Mahyol in the Wilayat of Manah.
The Wilayat of Al Hamra witnessed rains ranging from heavy to medium, concentrated on the mountain peaks of the eastern mountain, which led to the flow of Wadi Sha’ma, Al Madam, Wadi Gul and Wadi Al Nakhr.
Al Dhahirah Governorate witnessed moderate to heavy rains, accompanied by downward winds concentrated on the top of the mountains on a number of villages in the Wilayat of Dhank.
(With ONA inputs)
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