Distressed families are calling on the authorities to send divers into a large pit of water which they believe holds the bodies of six of their loved ones. The “death pit”, as it is known to residents, is in Al-Sawa'ed District and Obeid Planned District. It is about 6,000 sq. meters in size and was created during last week's floods. More than 13 officials have been to the pit including Maj. Gen. Adel Zamzami, chief of Civil Defense in Makkah Region, Brig. Gen. Muhammad Al-Ghamdi, Director of Civil Defense in Jeddah and Col. Abdulrahman Al-Thumali, Director of Al-Jamea District Police. Other officials who also came to see the pit include Jeddah's Deputy Mayor for Projects, Deputy Mayor for Services and members of the Shoura Council. Despite the large number of officials who visited the site, divers have not been sent into the water to recover the bodies, said relatives of the missing people. The families have been gathering at the pit hoping that something can be done to check whether any bodies are in it. But nothing has been done so far. The families have even brought heavy machinery, at their own expense, to pump water out of the pit, but they were not able to reduce the massive amount of water. Amer Al-Sulami, brother of Khidhir Al-Sulami, who has been missing since the morning of the floods, said his brother's car was found near the site. “We also found eyewitnesses who said the flood had dragged my brother toward the deep water-filled pit. Since that time, 10 days have passed and we see officials from numerous sectors passing by here. We haven't found anyone who can recover the missing from that abyss.” “A rescue team from the Civil Defense came a few days ago and measured the depth of the lake. They said it reached six meters. But they left without anyone descending into it.” Haimour Sulaiman, a Sudanese national, said he had spent a long time at the edge of the pit waiting for assistance. “One of the workers, who escaped death, said he saw my cousin being swept by the floodwater into the pit. We are beseeching Allah Almighty that we find him even if he is dead, so that we can bury him like the rest of the victims.”
