Floods caused gas cylinders to be washed away in the Syrian province of Latakia (social networking sites)
Heavy rains caused dozens of domestic and industrial gas cylinders to be washed away in the city of Latakia - western Syria - and halted work at the gas filling unit in the village of Sinjwan.
The torrential waters led to the collapse of the metal gates of the filling unit and the gas cylinders were swept across the adjacent water canal towards the industrial area and the riverbed, resulting in damage to some technical equipment.
The city of Latakia witnessed heavy rains at dawn yesterday, Saturday, as the percentage of rainfall, according to the Land and Water Department of the Agriculture Directorate, reached about 140 millimetres.
The Syrian regime's Ministry of Oil and Mineral Resources announced - in a statement - the restart of the plant, saying, "Maintenance workshops have finished repairing the damage to the plant, which was subjected to a strong torrent at dawn today as a result of the heavy rain that fell in the governorate."
According to the statement, "The floods caused damage to the factory that required it to stop work. The torrent also led to a number of gas cylinders in the factory being swept across the adjacent water canal towards the industrial area and the riverbed."
Regarding the reason for the presence of a large number of cylinders in the factory, the statement explained that there is a contract to supply 125 thousand industrial gas cylinders, “as numbers of them began to be received at the end of last month, and an initial receipt of 52 thousand cylinders was made and 16 thousand cylinders were stored in the Lattakia fuel branch and 36 thousand cylinders.” In the gas circuit.
He added, "The supply process is still ongoing, and these cylinders are currently under testing in the relevant authorities, and they need to complete the required documents to be distributed to the governorates and sold to industrial and commercial entities."
Syrian regime areas usually witness a severe domestic gas crisis. In 2019, activists circulated a video recording from the coast of Latakia showing a long line of civilians next to domestic gas cylinders, waiting to receive their share of gas.
Since June 2023, the price of a subsidized home gas cylinder has become 15,000 Syrian pounds (about one dollar only), the price of a home gas cylinder at the free price from inside or outside the electronic card is 50,000 Syrian pounds, and the price of an industrial gas cylinder is 75,000 Syrian pounds, in addition to expenses. Transportation and loading fees in the governorate, while they are sold on the black market at a price of 300 thousand liras (about 21 dollars).
Sinjwan is about 5 kilometers away from the center of the city of Latakia. It extends over a flat plateau 80 meters above sea level and is called “Al-Khader Plateau.” The village’s location is called “Al-Joura,” as it opens from the west and southwest to “Bouqa,” the ancient archaeological site and to the village. "Bassnada."
This village overlooking the Mediterranean coast can be reached from several directions, one of which is from the Aleppo-Latakia international road near the industrial zone, and the main one from the city of Latakia or from the Saqubin side.
This village has been famous throughout its history for its olives and oil, where production - despite the cutting of a fair number of trees due to urban expansion - amounts to approximately 30 tons.
Source: Al Jazeera + websites + social networking sites