Khaberni - Minister of Industry and Trade, Yarub Al-Qadi: All devices that caused the incident have been sent to the Royal Scientific Society, and samples have been taken from the three factories that manufactured these types of heaters.
Civil Defense Director Brigadier Nasser Suweilmeen: Every year we lose citizens due to heater suffocation, and we use all available means to educate and warn about the dangers.
Civil Defense Director: 3 injuries in Zahour and 6 injuries in Suwaylih due to heater suffocation today and yesterday.
The Parliamentary Energy and Mineral Resources Committee, at exactly eleven in the morning on Sunday, will hold an urgent and important meeting to discuss the file of unsafe heaters and the repeated suffocation incidents that have recently occurred, which have caused widespread concern in the local community due to the increasing number of victims.
This parliamentary emergency move comes in light of the alarming figures announced by the Public Security Directorate, where the death toll from heater suffocation incidents has risen to 10 deaths in just the past two days, necessitating an immediate regulatory intervention to stop this painful bleeding of lives.
In this regard, the head of the Parliamentary Energy Committee, Dr. Ayman Abu Hania, stressed that what the kingdom has witnessed in the past hours constitutes a "real alarm bell" that cannot be overlooked or ignored, emphasizing that the current situation requires dealing with the highest degrees of seriousness, national and ethical responsibility from all parties.
Abu Hania also noted that, stemming from the committee's regulatory and legislative responsibilities, the meeting will be held with the attendance of all relevant entities and specialists to sincerely and transparently identify the direct and indirect causes that led to these incidents, whether related to the quality of heaters or misuse.
According to the committee head, the meeting will cover a comprehensive and detailed review of all technical inspection procedures and the licensing mechanisms in place, as well as the market surveillance system, in order to identify weaknesses and flaws, paving the way for the necessary and strict recommendations that would protect citizens' lives and prevent such tragedies from recurring.
These developments come at a time when the kingdom is experiencing cold weather, prompting citizens to use various heating methods, amid ongoing warnings from the Civil Defense and relevant authorities on the necessity of home ventilation and ensuring heater safety. However, the rapid pace of these incidents has raised questions about the standards and specifications of some heating devices available in the market.
