A CALL for help has gone out from the residents of Buhair Valley following a spate of complaints of an increase in dog and snake bites.
They claim that the recent heavy downpour forced strays and slithering reptiles out of their hideouts to warmer and more sheltered dwellings.
MPs and councillors have forwarded several residents’ complaints to the relevant authorities demanding urgent action.
Parliament services committee chairman and area MP Ahmed Al Ansari said multiple new homes and businesses have been built in Buhair over the past decade. “Many homes and businesses have been built and others are in process of being constructed as the area witnesses vast urbanisation,” he added.
“We are been having problems with dogs but there are now snake threats, rat infestations and many other weird creepy-crawlies setting down on doorsteps, backyards, into living rooms and even beds!
“For many years residents have long been suffering from mosquitoes and forced to seal their windows using tape and now it’s far worse.”
He claims that there is an issue with rainwater swamps in the area as settled water fails to evaporate until the summer.
“Since it is a valley, water clusters during heavy rain and large stagnant swamps remain for months,” Mr Al Ansari added.
“We need to find solutions to the issue for the sake of residents in the area, who are suffering.”
Southern Municipal Council services and public utilities committee chairman and area councillor Abdulla Abdullatif said distressed residents had not stopped bombarding the council with calls demanding action.
“The pest invasion problem has surfaced following the rise in water levels over here in the valley,” he explained. “The place had few homes previously but now there are hundreds.
“Rodents, snakes, weasels, stray dogs have been forced out of hideouts and are now seeking refuge in nearby homes. It is an invasion or simply a mass attack!
“We don’t want surface solutions but real ones to tackle this problem.”
Resident Khalid Al Awadhi, who moved into his new home in Buhair 18 months ago with his wife and four daughters, explained that he was scared for the family’s wellbeing after several white snakes appeared around his home and one of his children was bitten on an eyelid.
“The situation is scary in Buhair and, in hindsight, if I knew that my daughters would be at risk of being bitten in the eyes, face, hands and legs I would have reconsidered by options,” said the 43-year-old banker.
“The place is nice but all kinds of spooky creatures live here. I have a backyard that I don’t use and my neighbours feel the same.”
The Buhair Valley, near Isa Town, dates back to prehistoric times as it contains fossils of creatures indicating that the area was once completely underwater.
Housing Minister Bassem Al Hamer revealed in June last year that 277 homes – costing BD9.6 million – had been completed as part of the development project’s first phase.
mohammed@gdn.com.bh
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