Storm hit’s western Saudi Arabia, disrupts flights, closes schools.
The Mecca regional government issued a call for everyone to stay indoors unless absolutely necessary after two fatalities from saudi storm been reported so far.
The Mecca region contains Mecca city, the holiest place in Islam, where millions of people undertake the hajj and umrah pilgrimage sites each year, as well as Jeddah, the second-largest city in the kingdom with a population of about four million.
As soon as this happened to rain on Thursday, the two-way road that many travelers use to get to Mecca was shut down, as according official media. However, authorities said it was later reopened.
The state-affiliated Al-Ekhbariya network broadcasted footage of worshippers circling the Kaaba, the cube-shaped building that serves as the center of Islam, at the Grand Mosque in Mecca as it was raining heavily outside.
Images shared via social media from Jeddah showed traffic stalled by standing water and some vehicles half immersed.
The departure of several aircraft has been delayed, according to city’s King Abdul-Aziz Airport, which asked travelers to call companies for the most recent schedules.
Before daybreak, the government Saudi Press Agency announced that city schools would be temporarily closed due to the expected persistence of the rain.
In order to “preserve the safety of male and female students,” schools in the nearby towns of Rabigh and Khulais were also closed.
