@kabeeryousef –

The Ministry of Health (MoH) has called on citizens, residents, and volunteers engaged in cleaning rain-affected areas to avoid getting affected by infectious diseases as stagnant water can become a source of germs and bacteria that may cause health risks.

Accordingly, the MoH has requested all who are engaged in the rehabilitation works to protect themselves and others while cleaning the affected areas, which may have corpses of rodents, flies and other animals that can spread diseases.

“We request all citizens and residents to wash every part of the houses that have been submerged, remove any mud, waste and accumulated dirt, and take care to dry and ventilate the area properly to eliminate chances breeding of germs which may cause health issues,” a statement from the Health Ministry said.

Make sure that the corpses of any animals, such as cows, rodents and camels, which were washed away in the flashfloods, are treated at the municipality facilities and water clogs from houses and public places are dried up. They may emerge as breeding grounds for diseases.

Meanwhile, cleaning was underway in the affected areas in Muscat, Batinah, Al Wusta and Khasab since Wednesday morning. Several civic workers and volunteers were seen making the homes livable and roads commutable.

“We have deployed our workers in the affected Wilayats with support from NGOs and volunteers,” a source at the civic body said.

Areas like Al Ghubra and Al Khuwair witnessed flash floods that forced commercial outlets to shut down, and families living on ground floors shifted to upper floors. In some areas, the security forces airlifted affected people to safer places.