Fatal Flood Leaves Saudis Asking When Their Prince Will Deliver
- Jeddah floods are replay of earlier disaster blamed on graft
- Prince says he’s cracking down as public seeks concrete gains
Lemand on the Impact of Saudi's Corruption Probe
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When the rain came at dawn, Aamir Farouk was prepared for the worst. He set off in his red jeep to join a volunteer rescue effort, knowing that Jeddah could soon be underwater. He was right: 15 minutes from home, he found about a dozen cars already stranded by the rising flood.
Saudi Arabia may be under new management, but the scene in its second-biggest city was a familiar one. Jeddah was battered by floods in 2009 and 2011, killing more than 100 people. Saudis blamed corruption and shoddy infrastructure: Billions of riyals were spent; somehow it failed to buy a decent drainage system.