JEDDAH — An eight-year-old boy died after falling into an exposed cistern in Al-Marwah District north of Jeddah on Sunday. Makkah Civil Defense spokesman Col. Saeed Sarhan said its Command and Control Center received reports of a boy who fell into a cistern belonging to a residential building in Al-Marwah District.
“The cistern belonged to a three-story building and was three meters deep. We rescued the boy from the cistern but he had already died,” said Sarhan. He added that the Civil Defense informed the police to investigate the incident further and the cistern was closed. Mohammad Ali, the victim's father, said he was at work when his brother called and told him his son, Ammar, had fallen in a cistern. “I rushed to the scene but found that my son had already died before the Civil Defense could save him. My son and his twin brother Amr are in the third grade and they were walking home from a Qu'ran memorization lesson as usual,” said Ali. — Okaz/Saudi Gazette
