Workers relocated to schools in Jeddah to fight COVID-19

Cairo: Authorities in the Saudi port city of Jeddah started relocating workers living in cramped residential complexes to school buildings in an effort to halt the spread of the novel coronavirus, Saudi newspaper Okaz said Monday. Saudi Arabia so far reported a total of 4,462 cornavirus cases including 59 deaths across the kingdom.

As part of the relocation plan, the Jeddah municipal authority will ask labour-intense companies to move their employees to schools as a temporary residence with the aim of easing overcrowding in their own residential complexes, according to the report.

The new residences are subjected to clean-up and sterilisation as part of the preventive measures. Hand sanitisers will also be set up in the schools in addition to availability of protective face masks and gloves.

The Saudi Ministry of Municipal and Village Affairs has recently set up an electronic platform for registering residential buildings to which workers across the kingdom can be relocated to stem the spread of the coronavirus.

Individuals and businesses have been requested to log on to the platform and register buildings that can be used as housing alternatives and note whether those buildings are for renting or donation, Okaz said.

The ministry will sort out the registered buildings and check their compatibility with the set sheltering conditions and hygienic rules. Those buildings can be residential blocks, apartments, rest houses, hotels, schools, factories and hospitals.