Al Madinah

 

 

There have been frequent incidents involving young children falling into uncovered manholes in Jeddah, and one would have expected that the authorities would take stringent action in the form of laws and regulations to stop these incidents from recurring.

 

We all agree that floods are natural disasters beyond our control and that deaths are also beyond our control. However, when it comes to uncovered manholes, it is crucial for us to hold those negligent responsible for their actions and to introduce legislation to protect members of the public.

 

 

 

An eight-year-old boy recently fell into a manhole near a three-story building under construction in the Al-Nuzha district of north Jeddah. Members of Civil Defense managed to pull the boy out, but it was too late. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Civil Defense launched an investigation and the police were also asked to investigate. Results of the investigations have not been released so far and no one has been arrested.

 

A similar incident occurred three months ago. A teenager named Abdullah Al-Zahrani also died when he fell into an open manhole near his high school. A month after he died, his parents found in his bedroom a note he had written a short time before his death. “I’m at home writing my will because I feel like I’m going to die soon. I want to ask everyone who has known me to pray for me after my death. I hope all the differences and disputes among people get resolved. I advise smokers to quit. If I ever hurt anyone, I hope they will forgive me. I love my parents. When I die, bury me in Makkah and read my will at school and post it on social media websites. I hope you build two mosques in my name. I want my father to be the last to leave the cemetery when they bury me.”

 

Last year, a young father and his five-year-old boy both died inside a manhole. The boy had fallen in first and the father had tried to rescue him.