Torrential rain hits Saudi Arabia, causing major flooding

[Turborama]

Source: BNO

Heavy rains on Wednesday flooded the streets of Saudi Arabia's city of Jeddah, exceeding the volume of rainfall recorded during the November floods that killed at least 123 people, Arab News reported.

In just three hours, Saudi Arabia's second largest city was inundated with 111 millimeters of rain, increasing from the 90 mm recorded in four hours during the Nov. 25, 2009 flash floods.

Mansour Al-Mazrouie, head of the meteorology department at the King Abdulaziz University (KAU), blamed climate change for the heavy rains in Jeddah. The average amount of rain during the winter months (November to January) is about 51 millimeters.

Eyewitnesses told Arab News that floodwater was turning streets into rivers once again, and that the water from a broken dam was flooding nearby neighborhoods. Cars were seen floating in some places.

Read more: http://channel6newsonline.com/2011/01/torrential-rain-hits-saudi-arabia-causing-major-flooding/

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One of the few places I'd never expect to hear about torrential rain and "major flooding" is Saudi Arabia.

[Catherina]

1. As if the House of Saud didn't have enough problems

keeping an eye on Tunisia, Algeria, Egypt, Yemen, Morocco.

[Brother Buzz]

2. Off topic and not quite germane but I always understood Saudi Arabia has no rivers

until now, anyway.

[Xithras]

4. Not quite correct.

Saudi Arabia has many rivers, but lacks sufficient rainfall to make them flow regulary. Riyadh itself is built along the banks of a dry river that traditionally only flowed once a decade or so. Interestingly, they started dumping their treated sewage wastewater into it about 20 years ago in sufficient quantities that it now has water in it constantly, making it the only river on the Arabian peninsula to flow year round in at least 6,000 years.

Yes folks, Saudi Arabia is the only nation on the planet that literally has a river of crap flowing out of its capitol ;)

[XemaSab]

3. 2011 is already

the year of the flood, or so I have heard it said.