On Friday September 4th heavy rain caused flooding in Northern Oman. The floods claimed 4 lives, including a young boy, his brother, mother and housemaid. Furthermore, the authorities are searching for a man who went missing in the Muttrah area (video: People risking their lives in Muttrah area in Muscat). The floods caused chaos in central Muscat, and made a large damage to businesses, including Muscat Grand Mall, where the ceiling collapsed.
But, why does this happen? More or less every time the rain falls the wadis and roads in Oman overflow and people die or get injured, because the rainwater is not channeled safely. Averagely, flooding kills 70 people every year in Oman, destroys more than 600 homes, and damages about 1,500 private businesses, according to Shaibany (Times of Oman). Furthermore, it destroys civil infrastructure and disrupts electricity, water supplies and telecommunication networks. Since 2010, the total average cost is above OMR1.2 billion (NOK25.9 billion) annually.
All around the world, innovations in flood control are happening, and in my opinion it needs to happen in Oman as well. According to environmentalists, half of the damage during heavy rain is caused by accumulation of water in the basins of mountains. After a few hours, gallons of water flow down the rocks to crack up roads. Then, the wadis overflow and residential areas are damaged and people injured. In addition, I believe government offices should be more strict with building permits, and other approvals. So that, ceilings such as the one in the Muscat Grand Mall, won´t collapse due to rain in the future.
Flood control is expensive and considering the sparseness of rain in Oman, one may argue that it is not necessary. However, in my opinion one can´t put a price tag on people´s lives and livelihoods. During my time in Oman people did die due to floods and it suddenly feels extremely close when you see it with your own eyes, and even learn about the mourning process because one of your dad´s colleagues just lost her family. To sum up, if the country had had flood control, the family who perished on Friday, as well as hundreds of others might still have been alive.
Video illustrating damages: MORNING MINUTE – Muscat Flooding News
