Muscat – A seminar titled ‘Al Mussarrat Low: Response and Impact’, organised by the Civil Defence and Ambulance Authority (CDAA) on Monday, concluded with a message that safeguarding lives is a shared responsibility that begins with individual awareness and rejection of risk-taking, reinforced by community adherence to official guidelines and a firm legal framework that holds negligence to account.

The seminar was inaugurated under the patronage of H E Dr Abdullah bin Nasser Al Harrasi, Minister of Information, in the presence of Maj Gen Suleiman bin Ali Al Husseini, Chairman of CDAA. Sessions reviewed the national response to the exceptional weather system, stressing the urgent need to raise public awareness about the dangers of entering wadis and high-risk areas to minimise human and material losses.

Attorney General Nasr bin Khamis Al Sawai highlighted a worrying rise in incidents involving vehicles attempting to cross flooded wadis, describing it as a growing pattern of recklessness compared to previous years. He affirmed that such behaviour is being met with firm legal action aimed at both general and specific deterrence to prevent recurrence.

For his part, H E Dr Saeed bin Harib Al Lamki, Undersecretary for Health Affairs in the Ministry of Health, said the healthcare system operated within a fully integrated framework involving civilian, military and private sectors, despite significant challenges posed by the weather conditions. He noted that the key challenge was not the availability of services, but ensuring rapid and safe access to emergency care, particularly with a surge in critical cases – most of them among youth – linked to risky behaviour in wadis.

Official figures showed 515 emergency reports, including 261 directly related to the weather system, alongside 179 vehicle entrapments, 55 cases of people trapped in homes, and 26 in other locations. Four drowning incidents were recorded, while fatalities reached 14 – considered high compared to previous events.

The seminar underscored that a 95% rescue success rate reflects strong coordination among agencies, but warned that lasting impact depends on deeper public awareness that places safety above all else.