By Mohammed Al-Ziyadi

Okaz/Saudi Gazette

TAIF — A couple drowned in the valley water in Taif on Sunday.

Col. Saeed Sarhan, spokesman of the Makkah Civil Defense, said bodies of a man and his wife were pulled out of the muddy water after hours of continued search. Several other volunteers also helped the Civil Defense teams in the search operation.

The spokesman said the Civil Defense acted on information passed by a citizen that a car was parked near the Ghadeer Al-Banat (Valley of Girls) with two small children inside it.

Sarhan said the Civil Defense teams found the car but were unable to pinpoint the reason why the car was parked there and where the other occupants of the car were.

He said the rescue teams traced footprints from the car to the valley and found shoes of a woman near the valley.

The spokesman said after hectic search in a two-meter deep water the body of the woman was found. He said it was clear from her papers that the woman was a foreigner.

He said the body of the husband was found the next day. "The water of the valley was high and the ground was muddy. This made the search difficult," he added.

The spokesman warned citizens and expatriates not to go near the flooded valleys or try to go inside the water.