Since the beginning of the rainy season in July 2020, Old Sana'a has been the most affected by torrential rains and floods; many buildings and walls of the old city have been severely collapsed. The old Sana'a, which represents one of the key living human heritage cities with an estimated number of 54 zone, containing about 12,000 homes, is currently crying for help which required concerning authority to imposing a state of emergency to save the city.
"Khuyut" visited a number of neighborhoods in the old city (Al-Jami' Al-Kabeer, Al-Dar Al-Jadeed and Ma'ad, Al-Madrasa, Al-Qasimi and Broum, Al-Abhar, Bustan Shareb, Al-Falihi, Qubbat Al-Mahdi, Bir Al-Mansour, Al-Dhahab and others). The extent of the damage varied between complete and partial devastation, in addition to the fall of the roofs.
Khuyut has reviewed official reports showing the number of damaged buildings until the time of writing this investigation (early August 2020), which said that 1,000 houses, 39 of which demolished completely, 102 partially collapsed, and 256 buildings were subjected to the fall of coating, navigation and cracks while the buildings in danger of collapse amounted to 89 buildings, and the number of closed buildings during the survey process exceeded 984 buildings. It should be noted that the number of the demages are still expected to increase, according to both the former head of the Authority, "Khaled al-Ibrahimi", and the current acting chairman, engineer "Mujahid Tamish.".
On August 17, 2020, the Civil Defense Department in Sana'a reported that it had "recorded 70 deaths, and 462 homes were destroyed as a result of the torrential rains that Yemen witnessed" during the same period.
Tamesh told "Khuyut" that "the recent rains have had a great impact on the city," and that the damage was directly concentrated on the roofs of houses, pointing out that the authority formed - during the rainy season and last Eid Al-Adha vacation - a committee of specialists and technicians to monitor the destruction cases; counting and following up of demages.
On the other hand, Yemen’s delegate to UNESCO, Mohammad Jumaih, sent a letter to the organization on August 5, 2020, in which he referred to the destruction that affected a number of archaeological sites, coinciding with the rainy season, and in particular the three sites registered on UNESCO’s list (Sana’a Old City, Shibam, Hadhramaut and Zabid). UNESCO, for its part, expressed on August 11, its regret for the loss of lives and property in a number of historical cities, including Zabid, Shibam Hadramout and Old Sana'a.
Tamish has also indicated that the General Authority has addressed several government agencies, including the Capital Secretariat, the Ministry of Culture, and the Presidency of the Republic, by phone or formally, and that “outcomes" of these communication efforts yield in the formation of the Higher Committee for Emergencies, which in turn performed surveys on damage on the ground through; determine the essential needs, develop emergency plans in anticipation of forthcoming damages with the continued rains. Based on these efforts, the General Authority has prepared the statistics and developed the emergency plan.
Causes of collapses inside the city
Regarding the causes behind the serious damage and the massive collapse of the old buildings of Sanaa, the architect Yassin Ghaleb spoke to "Khuyut", citing several reasons including; "negligence and inaction by the authorities since the city enrolled on the World Heritage List in 1986." The city still lacks the simplest things, he added. The first, from a methodological point of view, is the city preservation plan, which is the cornerstone of city preservation, as it bears two parts; a compulsory legal-legislative part, and the second part is accompanied by technical legislation to preserve the city, not to mention the maintenance article in the Historic Cities Preservation Law, which states the necessary to perform periodic maintenance of the city.
For his part, Tamish believes that the reasons for the exacerbation of the damage are due to the citizens’ total dependence on the state, even with regard to the basic maintenances that the residents could have repaired themselves with small costs to avoid the aggravation of the risks. He further explained that self-maintenance has been prevailed for a long time and was common among the people, starting with: inspecting the roofs and leveling the surface soil and inspecting rainwater sewers (gutters), every season.
Referring to the provisions of Law No. 16 of 2013 regarding the preservation of Yemeni cities, sites, historical monuments and cultural and urban heritage, Article No. 15 stipulates that preservation is “a set of periodic actions aimed at preventing the deterioration of a building or historical landmark without compromising its architectural features and characteristics or distinct historical, or making any other additions to it or changing its function, except in accordance with the situations and conditions specified by the bylaw.”
Samah Telha, Director of the Supreme Council for Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Response and International Cooperation, told "Khuyut" that the weakness of the buildings' foundations, and the impact of air strikes, landslides, and the persistence of torrential rains are the key factors that caused these damages.
Khaled Al-Ibrahimi, the former head of the General Authority for the Preservation of Cities and Historic Monuments, had talked about the impacts of the air strikes that surroundings of the city including; The “Al-Orthi” defense complex from the south, the Al-Qasimi and Brom neighborhoods from the east, the Al-Falihi neighborhood in the center, and the Military Command Authority in the west of the city, as well as the air strikes that targeted Jabal Naqm that overlooking Sana'a which caused direct damage given the long of time passed without launching any restoration or maintenance of the old Sana'a..
Victims and emergency plan
While touring a number of lanes in the old city, "Khuyut" met a number of owners of damaged houses, including "Nuriya Abdullah al-Dhaiqi", a resident of the new Dar zone, who said that heavy rain had caused the roof of her house to fall down before Eid al-Adha, and part of it collapsed; After the roof fell, she photographed the damage to the house, and sent it to the engineer "Tariq Hatem", an engineer at the Authority, and in turn, he replied that he could not do anything because the name of her house is not on the list of the current restoration plan.
Nouria confirmed that if she does not receive support to renovate the house, the damage will worsen and the concerned authorities will be responsible for this, especially after she submitted a restoration request.
For his part, "Majid Aadad", whose family of six lives in a brokerage in the new neighborhood of Dar, spoke to " Khuyut " about the fall of part of the brokerage roof, and the cracking of the rest due to the rain, and said that he bought a drum for the roof of the house to prevent rain. above his family, noting that his lack of acquaintance with one of the workers within the General Authority for the Preservation of Historic Cities prevented him from reporting the damages to the brokers.
Khuyut has also reviewed the extent of the damages in a number of Al Qasimi neighborhood houses; Ahmed Abdullah Masood, one of the affected residents of the zone, said that getting a plastic cover (Tarbal ) to take shelter from the rain will required you to register your name with the Chief of the zone and then wait until you get one!.
Khuyut met with one of affected residents of Bustan Sharp zone, who referred to the damage caused to their house as a result of the collapse of part of the southern wall of the city. "Part of the southern wall collapsed in the middle of the night on August 3, over our house, which led to severe damage, especially in the storeroom and kitchens, which are located outside the house (next to the fence). He added that dirt covered the entrance to the house, which required the visit of some officials of the General Authority for the Preservation of Historic Cities, including “Ammat al-Razzaq Jahaf,” the undersecretary of the General Authority who attended to the site on the next day to see the situation closely.
On the other hand, UNESCO stated that there is a need for more joint coordination efforts with the local authorities to avoid greater losses in the city in order to ensure that the population can continue to live and preserve their heritage as they have done for centuries.
Tamish explained the reasons for the lack of response so far, because the authority does not have an emergency budget, although it is likely that the number of damaged buildings will reach more than 500 homes, yet the authority is still unable to do what is necessary due to the lack of an emergency budget.
Partial collapse of inner wall in the area of Bustan Sharp
For his part, Engineer Aqil Al-Nasari, Vice President of the Preservation of Historic Cities Authority, told "Khuyut" that the Authority is seeking to take some rescue measures, by obtaining "Plastic Covers" from some businessmen until the roofs are muzzled; as a result to this call, approximately 2,000 covers from the Hayel Saeed Anam group were provided.
Al-Nasari pointed out in his speech that part of the fence, which is located in the Sharp Grove, collapsed in the interior, due to the newly houses constructed to the back of the fence in the area of the waterway, which is three meters wide, which led to the blocking of water, noting that work is being initiated to restore it as soon as possible, explaining that the Authority is a purely technical and advisory body, suffering from shortages of financial resources which were declined dramatically as a result to the impacts of the ongoing war. He emphasized on the imperative role that the citizens have to play in this critical stage that the country is going through.
In this emergency situation, the routine procedures and modesty of the relevant international organizations contribute to aggravating the situation due to the slow response that may range from one to three years. In addition, the support would not be provided to the authority directly, as a result of the bank’s division between Sana’a and Aden; The latter does not deal with the Authority, according to Al-Nasari, adding that the funds that come to Sana’a are subject to supervision by the authorities and other parties, such as the Social Fund for Development and the Public Works Project.
Nonetheless, Tamish said that the restoration process is underway for 40 houses, including the collapsed “Al-Humaidi” house, located in the Salah al-Din neighborhood. The restoration process has been underway since the month of Ramadan, but the work was halted due to the intervention of the National Security, which demanded a restoration permit.
On her part, Samah Ali Telha, Director of the Supreme Council for Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Response and International Cooperation, stated to "Khuyut" that: "The Council receives reports of the affected houses, after which the case is examined and the relevant form is filled out, with the existing data on the case, and then the reports are submitted to the Supreme Council, and in turn they submit to the humanitarian aids organizations for provision of aids.
Telha indicated that homeowners near the flood corridor are being sensitized to take precautionary measures, such as building one-meter-high water barriers on the door of the house, and evacuating the first floors, in anticipation of the flooding of rainwater.
Telha continues her statement, saying that the council's role is limited to awareness raising, monitoring, coordination and emergency relief only.
In this regard, "Al-Ibrahimi" had talked about an emergency plan to save the historic cities, whose repair budget in Zabid amounted to 196 million, following the collapse of more than 67 houses. The committee was formed from the director of the authority's branch in Zabid and a group of engineers.
Further, he pointed out that the old Sana’a needs about 180 million to cover the restoration costs as the damaged buildings are expected to reach more than 500 homes, according to data and studies, noting that these amounts will be allocated to meet the urgent restoring needs of repairing roofs and walls and providing plastic covers.
The collapse of the house of the Yemeni poet Abdullah Al-Baradouni
Despite the symbolism of the house of the great Yemeni poet, Abdullah Al-Bardouni, the authorities did not take the initiative to preserve it from breakdown due to the recent rains. The house had been closed for more than 15 years, as a result of disputes between the heirs, according to the statement of Ali al-Sultan, who lives in the neighborhood next to the "Bardouni" house.
The Sultan told "Khuyut", that "the neighbors informed the concerned authorities about the presence of a tilt in the wall of the house threatening to fall before the raining seasons.
"Tamish considered that the heirs' problems are a major cause in the damage to historical buildings, including the "Al-Bardawuni" house and the "Mahdi" house, which was abandoned for more than 30 years.
In addition, Yemeni academics, writers and intellectuals expressed their dissatisfaction with the failure of the authorities in charge of preserving Old Sana'a, including the house of the poet "Al-Baradouni." The writer Abdel Rahman Bagash said: "It was difficult for me to say anything, especially since I knew the house. Behind the door was buzzing with al-Baradouni poetic words, with the glowing word... Now every free Yemeni man who knows what "Al-Baradouni" means" must go to the destroyed home and announce the death of all of us...".
After the destruction of Al-Baradouni
In the same context, Dr. Abdul Rahman Al-Saafani, Professor of Literature and Criticism at Sana’a University, expressed his sadness at the collapse of the house of the great poet “Abdullah Al-Baradouni”, noting that all Yemen is drowning due to heavy rains which will abolish what is left in this forgotten country.
Al-Sa'sfani pointed out that the competent authorities were called on a long time ago to turn the house into a private museum concerned with the biography of Al-Baradouni, and collecting everything related to his antiquities and exploits, but the matter stumbled as a result of the heirs’ quarrel, the Ministry of Culture hesitated, until it was recently collapsed totally.
The Great Mosque of Sanaa
In the neighborhood of the Great Mosque, the damages report submitted to the Authority has been locked up since 2002; The cracks began to appear in 2004; Because of the sewage network of the Great Mosque. “Asda” house is one of these damaged houses, which collapsed on August 5 due to rain. “Yahya Asada,” the owner of the collapsed house, told “Khuyut” that the damage started with cracks on the second floor of his house after the installation of the drainage network of the Great Mosque in Sana’a.
Khuyut heard the testimonies of a number of homeowners in the neighborhood of the Great Mosque, including "Tariq Ghadaman", a resident of the neighborhood of the Great Mosque including Asda, who documented the fall of his home.
In this regard, "Khuyut" had seen a copy of the notice to vacate the "Asda" house for renovation on January 24, 2009; the notice states that the restoration work will take place immediately after the eviction but that was not fulfilled by the concerned authorities.
Um Haitham, the sister of Yahya Asda, stated that in 2012, they were forced to leave the house, after her brother Yahya was imprisoned for not implementing the order to vacate the house in order to be repaired immediately. Additionally, the authorities promised to provide Asda family with financial support to pay the rent of a new house. However, the rent was paid for about a year, after which it was suspended.
Umm Haitham added that the competent authorities bear the responsibility for the destruction of the house, and demand the state to open an investigation file, so that everyone who caused the demolition of the house will be held accountable; Khuyut has seen some of those documents, which actually indicate that the "Asda" family has officially addressed the responsible authorities.
In the same context, "Ghamdan" confirmed to "Khuyut" that the concerned authorities' decision to evacuate the owners of their houses contributed to the neglect and increase of the damages and the threat of falling. He pointed out that there is great corruption in the file of the Great Mosque neighborhoods, noting that instead of paying the rents to the owners of the houses, who were evicted, the authorities could restore those houses with the budget allocated as rents instead, adding that the wall of one of the houses was rebuilt at a cost of 45 million. So he has asked, "Does building a wall cost this huge amount?!"
In turn, "Khuyut" presented this file to the Authority's officials to comment. Formal official "Tamash" confirmed that the collapses that occurred in the buildings of the neighborhood of the Great Mosque, were already affected by the sewer network of the Great Mosque in 2002, and that it was in the custody of the Capital Secretariat and the Water and Sewage Corporation, where these two parties resorted to partial remedies, but later was stopped completely. He stressed that the restoration of the 11 houses affected by the neighborhood of the Great Mosque will be carried out in one framework, pointing out that they have documented the damage and performed integrated studies and restoration plans for those houses in full but they need funding from the international donors, especially UNESCO to execute the restoration process.
Tamish added that studies were previously conducted for the Great Mosque area, and they were submitted to the supporting bodies, especially UNESCO.
It is worth noting that the residents of the neighborhood of the Great Mosque (the western side), demanded an investigation into what happened and is happening to the neighborhood, and who was responsible for what happened, and this affected the history of the old city of Sanaa and the residents.
Engineer Ghaleb agreed with the appeals of the citizens living in the area of the Great Mosque, and said: "The intervention that took place in these houses was partial, and up to date, these houses have collapsed or are on the verge of ruin, and the reason for this is the imbalances in the infrastructure."
Who is responsible?
Engineer Ghaleb emphasized that the responsibility rests with the state which had restricted ownership to the citizen, who is absent from decision-making, in addition to the lack of awareness and national culture of the importance of their historic heritage.
He pointed out that the conflict of specializations is one of the reasons for the exacerbation of the problems of historical cities, especially old Sanaa. He explained that the General Authority for the Preservation of Historic Cities lacks the capacity and plans and the scientific method for dealing with historical cities, stressing that staff appointments within this Authority is subject of of favoritism and connections.
For her part, Doaa Al-Wasei, head of the Arsh Belqis Foundation for Heritage Development, said: "The inability of the Authority to carry out the maintenance work since the beginning of the war is attributed to various reasons, including a deficiency in the financial, administrative and legal systems, in addition to the limited financial resources of the Authority as has always been reported."
Tamish points out the significance of integrating the efforts of all relevant parties concerned with preserving Old Sana’a, referring to the large revenues enjoyed by the Old Sana’a Directorate. However, these revenues have been squandered on other expenditures that do not include preservation, restoration and maintenance of historic buildings. He further expressed blame on the state higher authorities who are accused of leaving the Authority without support or an emergency budget, calling on everyone to join hands in order to preserve the history and identity of an entire country, represented by ancient Sana’a and other metropolises of the Yemeni great civilization.
