I headed east, four kilometers from Damad Governorate, to the “Al-Shukairy” center, which has turned into a large center with its growth and urban development, but torrential rains isolate its villages.
Muhammad Abdo Shubaili confirms that rugged dirt lines linking the villages of “Al-Shukairy” are difficult to walk on, especially during the rainy season, as these sand lines are affected by them, and they need an asphalted road network.
While Hussein Fawaz calls for the return of the Sharia court, which was moved due to the distance of his villages from each other, and the difficulty that the people of Al-Shugairi face in moving to the distant court, Ahmed Khawaji explains that distances have become an obsession for the people of the center after the transfer of the court.
As for Sheikh Yahya, he explains that some villages of Al-Shukairy are being eroded due to the flow of torrents, and we called more than once for the implementation of dams to ward off the torrents from them and their people, especially since the rains are heavy in the region and the water collects in Wadi Damad, indicating that several committees visited Al-Shukairy and his villages and acknowledged the danger and warned of the consequences The sheikh of the Bani Abs tribes, Muhammad bin Qawam, emphasized the seriousness of the torrential rains, asking: Is there a correction for this dangerous situation?
Ibrahim Khawaji says: “The Shugairi Center needs a civil defense squad to extinguish the fires in the homes of citizens who always make this effort themselves.” He believes that the Shugairi Primary Health Care Center lacks medical personnel, and calls for a hospital project in Shugairi.
Hussein Fawaz complains about the role of the Municipal Services Office after many places have turned into a collection of waste, and he demands follow-up on foodstuffs in shops and restaurants, and for this we find that some materials have expired and their dates are still on sale, which led to the occurrence of diseases.
Hussein Omeish says: “Civil defense centers have covered all regions of the Kingdom, except for the Al-Shukairy center, which lacks this service despite the many fires and disasters that inflicted huge financial losses on the people and destroyed their homes and shops.”
Omeish says: “The situation is beyond question. With the frequent interruptions of desalinated water for periods, we have resorted to cisterns and vats, which cost the villagers a lot of material burdens, although they need someone to help them and give them a helping hand. The reasons for these outages are determined by the Water Department and resolved urgently,” explaining that the problem of primary care in Shugairi is the lack of medical personnel, and we often resort to private hospitals due to the lack of specialization in care.
The head of the center and Sheikh Al-Shamal: development projects that need to be continued
The head of the Shugairi Center, Ali Abdo Jubaili, confirmed to “Okaz” that the torrential torrents as a result of the rains that fall on the region and on the mountainous heights always cause isolation and abandonment of villages belonging to the Shugairi Center and cut off the roads leading to them, as happened recently, referring to the raid of the torrents of Wadi Blaj on the citizens’ homes. , as it besieged them for 24 hours before opening the way to them.
He explained that the Municipality of Damad, the Civil Defense and the Municipality of the region are making tangible efforts so that they can open the roads for the besieged desert, stressing that the torrential rains of Wadi Qusa isolate some villages of Al-Shukairy, at a distance of 20 kilometers, especially the village of Al-Arwaq and some of the villages affiliated with it, and cause severe damage to the bridges and ferries that connect the area. In Al-Aidabi before the road was opened and repaired, indicating that it is the second time that the Wadi Qusa torrent caused the highway to be cut off and the ferries and bridges damaged.
In his interview with "Okaz", Sheikh Al-Shamal Ali Abu Talib explained: "Al-Shugairi received services and development projects that are in the interest of Al-Shugairi's children, but we still aspire to provide other necessary services," noting that the village is affiliated with 40 villages with 30,000 people.
Al-Shugairi's problems were not limited to the floods and the restoration of the court. Rather, there are other claims raised by Sheikh Abu Talib, such as: repairing and maintaining the roads destroyed by the institutions implementing some services and lighting them, expanding and lighting the new line, and lighting the internal streets, especially with the increase in the population in the town and its remarkable growth.
He confirmed that the mayor of Damad Al-Jadeed visited the villages of Al-Shukairy on an inspection tour to find out the damage that occurred, and he is expected to repair these damages, explaining that cleanliness is present, but not as required.
Among the troubles that the sons of Al-Shugairi complain about is the roughness of the road connecting Al-Shukairy and Al-Jahw. During the rainy season, there is no trace of this road. Sheikh Abu Talib explains that the link that connects Al-Shukairy with Al-Jahw and distant villages is always washed away by torrents, and because of this, the road is cut off and vehicles are impounded.
Abdulaziz Maafa (bandage)