UAE | Environment

Struggling to repair Gonu's damage

A week after cyclone Gonu floods submerged the Suhailah area here, many residents are still struggling to get their lives back to normal.

  • By Fuad Ali, Staff Reporter
  • Published: 23:38 May 3, 2009
  • Gulf News

  • Many residents are still struggling to get their lives back to normal a week after cyclone Gonu hit the east coast.
  • Image Credit: Fuad Ali/Gulf News
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Kalba: A week after cyclone Gonu floods submerged the Suhailah area here, many residents are still struggling to get their lives back to normal.

While many small businesses on the Corniche Road are up and running, many others are still counting their losses and slowly trying to get things moving again.

Abdullah Saeed Al Za'abi said the office of his construction firm suffered extensive damage of over Dh200,000, not to mention lost business.

"The furniture, flooring and all company documents have been damaged. It will take 10 days before we can open for business again," he said.

Al Za'abi said he was sure that they lost potential contracts. "Many clients think we're not in business. The loss of such opportunities alone could run into hundreds of thousands of dirhams," Al Za'abi added.

Many residents and businessmen said they were happy about the news of compensation to be granted to the flood victims. Emergency aid of Dh22 million was ordered for the victims whose homes and belongings were affected. Separate compensation will be allocated for fishermen to cover their losses. The compensation was ordered by President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

The story at Al Orjuwan Ladies Saloon - next door - is similar.

As far as Amaal Mezian and her co-workers, the floods have come at the worst possible time.

Summer time is wedding season, the busiest and most lucrative as brides and their wedding parties spend thousands of dirhams to look good for their big day.

Ammal said they had to pay back thousands of dirhams worth of deposits to clients because the saloon is still out of business.

"We had many clients booked, some at Dh5,000 a head, but we are still many days away from being able to do business here," said Amaal.

Uninsured

Like many, the saloon suffered extensive damage to hair-dressing machines, furniture and flooring. In fact, many small businesses have been badly hit since they are not insured.

For the family of Ebaid Rashid Khalfan, the damage to their modest old house was perhaps one of the worst in all of Suhailah. Apart from all the house furniture, the seawater also damaged the structure of the house, said Ebaid.

The family has so far received a fridge, gas cooker and washing machines along with a promise of some cash. Ebaid said: "We're grateful for the help we received so far but still we find ourselves with nothing to sleep on and unable even to cook for ourselves ...

"My wife is pregnant and my father is an elderly man and they both have to sleep on the floor."

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