Khaberni - On Thursday, Minister of Public Works and Housing, Engineer Maher Abu Al-Samn inspected the progress of work at sites damaged as a result of the weather depression experienced by Aqaba Governorate last December.
According to a press statement released on Friday by the ministry, the field tour included Road No. 90 extending from Al-Burdaini Bridge to the container port, in addition to the tunnel area adjacent to the rice factory and Mubarak Valley, to review the rehabilitation and protection measures being implemented by the ministry’s personnel.
Abu Al-Samn reviewed the efforts made on the back road of Aqaba, where technical teams began removing the accumulated silt and cleaning the valley paths to ensure their capacity to handle large water flows. He also followed the progress of work in repairing the damages that affected the road sides, retaining walls, and traffic safety elements, emphasizing the importance of implementing the planned 700-meter-long retaining walls to protect the asphalt mix from erosion and slippage, noting that the estimated cost for repairing the damages at this site amounted to two million dinars.
In the tunnel area, the minister followed up on the water drainage works and the removal of the dirt that had previously impeded the movement of trucks after the silt reached a height of up to four meters in some places. Work is currently underway on constructing culverts for rainwater drainage and executing protection works and "Gabion" walls to ensure there is no repeat of water accumulation inside the tunnel, as part of the treatment plan estimated at about 1.3 million dinars.
During his tour, the minister expressed his dissatisfaction with the work mechanism and its speed, emphasizing the necessity to adhere to technical specifications and the need to complete all works within the required technical specifications as quickly as possible, to ensure the continuous flow of traffic and shipping towards the ports efficiently.
Abu Al-Samn directed the relevant ministry staff to intensify monitoring of the works and not to tolerate any noncompliance with the specifications or slowness in the pace of work, and to take all contractual and legal measures if necessary.
