Though rain is rare in Jeddah, the slightest touch of raindrops these days can send students home from schools and employees scrambling out of offices.
“Rain phobia has taken different forms and shapes,” said Dr. Saleh Al-Arabi, a clinical psychologist. “With a little downpour on Wednesday, schools stopped classes and parents hurried to the schools to bring back their children.”
He said many Saudi and foreign families refrain from sending their children to schools at the sight of dark clouds.
“With reports about imminent rain in the past few days, the markets and the streets remained almost empty. Many residents were hesitant to go out in order not to be trapped in traffic gridlocks resulting from rains,” said Al-Arabi.
Abdul Aziz Al-Wattar, media director of the Marketing Committee at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said rain phobia has become understandable after last year's floods.
“I kept my children at home to protect them against any hazards when I came to know about the possibility of rain last Saturday from the local media,” Al-Wattar said.
Meanwhile, Hussain Al-Qahtani, director of PR at the Presidency of Meteorology and Environment (PME), said that of late the PME was receiving more than a thousand telephone calls an hour from people asking about the possibility of rain.
He said the majority of calls were made by housewives and students.
Ashraf Amin, an employee of a medical center, said the memories of last year's rains and floods were still vivid in the minds of a large number of residents.
“For many of them rain means death and destruction,” he said. “I am scared of rain.”
By GALAL FAKKAR
