Emir of Makkah and Chairman of the Main Civil Defense Committee in the province, Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, has approved a number of measures recommended by the city's Flood Protection Committee. The implementation of the recommendations has already started. According to Makkah Civil Defense director Brigadier Jameel Bin Muhammad Arbaeen, the recommendations include the removal of establishments and farms inside valleys which may be in danger, or may cause a change in the course of floods to other nearby sites. Other recommendations are to implement scientific solutions in residential areas to guarantee flood protection, and halt the construction of new residential areas in endangered locations until solutions are found that can guarantee their protection from floods. The recommendations also call for halting the issuance of construction permits in approved residential areas that are located in flood courses and are still uninhabited, and banning residential and commercial construction in valleys and flood courses. “For now, the relevant authorities are to take the necessary measures to prevent floodwater from entering inhabited districts located in valleys and flood courses through barriers and drainage channels,” said Brigadier Arbaeen, stressing that the rule of the Encroachment Committee is to prevent the construction of rest houses and farms in endangered areas.
