NAJRAN – A Saudi has brought a lawsuit against the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture following a road accident that killed his wife and injured his son. Salih Al-Khozaim, the husband, said his son was driving his car on King Abdullah Road here when all of a sudden he swerved off and hit another car trying to avoid a big pothole in the middle of the road, which did not have any warning signs. His son's car hit another on the road and toppled over, killing his wife on the spot. "The subcontractor did not put up any warning signs near the large pothole. My wife died because of this blatant negligence. I believe in fate but the subcontractor did fail to comply with public safety requirements and because of that my wife died, leaving behind five daughters and four sons," he said. Waleed Al-Khozaim, the son, said there were no warning signs at all although the pothole was located at a curvy corner. "I tried so hard not to fall into the pothole and had to swerve off. The next thing I knew I hit another car on the road and lost control over the steering wheel. Our car tipped over and my mother died while I was injured in the neck. The subcontractor and those involved with it should be held accountable for this blatant negligence," he said. The husband said another accident has taken place before at the same spot and the authorities did not take any action regarding the pothole. The project is being implemented by the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture. The ministry has formed a committee to find out the causes of the accident and hold accountable the party responsible for the accident. It promised to reveal the results with high-level transparency.
