JEDDAH/AL-LEETH – Family members of three young Saudi women who drowned off Al-Leeth coast during the Eid holidays accused the border guards of downright negligence in carrying out rescue efforts. Azizah, Fatimah and Tahani, who drowned in the sea south of Al-Rakah Center in Al-Leeth, were buried by relatives on Friday. Hashim Al-Muzayini, their maternal uncle, rejected Border Guard explanations with respect to the rescue efforts. He said one of the women, aged 20, was standing in the water at about 5.00 P.M., when she was washed away into the sea by strong waves. Six other women from the family rushed to her rescue, but they were too fighting against the waves. Their shouts for help prompted three male relatives to rush to their rescue. They could save only four of the women. “At this point, the husband of one of the dead women, went to the Border Guard station in Al-Rakah, about 2 km away, to alert the officials of the incident. They replied that they didn't have any rescuers. He returned empty-handed and joined the search with relatives. After an hour's search, they saw the bodies floating in the sea and the tide carried them to the shore. “The Border Guard patrol arrived at 6.00 P.M. When we requested their help to carry the dead bodies, they told us that they were just part of the patrol team and were not rescuers. We were forced to carry the three injured girls and the bodies to Al-Leeth General Hospital in our private cars,” Al-Muzayini said. He pointed out that there were no warning signs in the area nor was the beach fenced. Navy Col. Saleh Al-Shihri, spokesman for the Border Guard in Makkah region, said his officers could not comply with the husband's request because the rescue teams should include special diving and search equipment in such dangerous areas with whirlpools. As for charges that the Border Guard patrol in the area did not know how to swim, he said this was untrue because all Border Guard personnel do not graduate from the institute unless they become good swimmers. He added that the patrol team took 30 minutes to reach the scene because the location was far away from the station. Al-Shihri warned people against going to isolated areas for swimming because they may be dangerous.
