‘Work on to restore power’
Eng. Hasan Al Ajmi, Corporate Risk & Group Business Continuity Manager at Nama Group, said, “So far, we have restored electricity services in 38 areas and work is underway to bring electricity back to the wilayats of Rakhyut, Dhalkut, Sadah, and Mirbat.”
In a statement, the Ministry of Oil and Gas announced, “Some 84 per cent of the petrol stations were reopened from a total of 61 stations in the governorate.”
Meanwhile, a total of 363 telecom stations were affected by the storm, according to the Information Technology Authority (ITA).
“In the telecommunications sector, the total number of affected telecom stations reached 363. In the past 24 hours, more than 121 stations were restarted, whereas 242 stations remained affected,” Majid Al Baluchi from ITA said in a statement. “Local roaming was activated so that all subscribers could stay connected wherever they are.”
Mahmoud Al Saqri, representative of basic service sectors at the National Committee for Civil Defense, said, “The water sector is currently dealing with four fractures to its main water lines. The Salalah-Wadi Salalah and the Salalah-Raysut lines are, however, operational. The water fractures are currently being fixed and it is hoped it will be completed soon.”
Eng. Awad Al Sudairi, a representative of the Ministry of Transport and Communications, said, “As for the transport sector, some roads have been opened for traffic. The damaged roads, on the other hand, are undergoing repairs and will be open to traffic as soon as possible.”
The Governorate of Dhofar is on its way to returning to normal, as teams work day and night to fix roads, repair damage, and provide food and water to residents.
“Since Sunday, efforts have been underway to fix the Al Mughsayl-Dhalkut road and reopen the way towards the western parts of Dhofar, which has been completely cut off since the cyclone,” he said.
“We hope that work to fix the road will be completed today.”
To meet people’s water needs in the immediate aftermath of Mekunu, the National Committee for Civil Defence is also inviting the owners of water tanks filled with potable water in Dhofar Governorate to proceed urgently to Salalah to provide supplies to those in areas cut off by wadis and other natural hazards.
“The appeal is general because the areas that have been cut off are very large and many have been communicating with us asking for these supplies,” Sadiq added.
“We hope that everyone will benefit from this experience in the Dhofar Governorate and appreciate the cooperation of the citizens, along with the calls of the police to get out of low areas to the quartering areas, which contributed to the preservation of lives and reduction in losses.”