Tabarka was, today, Tuesday, March 5, 2024, the site of a joint drill between Tunisia and Saudi Arabia designed to simulate a 7.5 magnitude earthquake.
Brigadier General Saleh Al-Qirbi, the director of the Tunisian-Saudi joint search and rescue exercise, assured that the exercise falls within the cooperation and bilateral ties between Tunisia’s National Office of Civil Protection and Saudi Arabia’s Civil Protection Service.
He further clarified that this drill is also a part of the preparations for the upgrade of the Tunisian search and rescue team’s classification, according to international standards, from the medium to heavy category, planned for 2026.
Concerning the content of the drill, Brigadier General Saleh Al-Qirbi revealed that it is a simulation of an earthquake measuring 7.5 on the Richter scale hitting the city of Tabarka, causing extensive damage, including the collapse of buildings, and numerous deaths, including damage caused by a crack at the Djaballah dam.
The scenario outlined that 27 people were wounded overnight during the rescue operations, necessitating the intervention of both Tunisian and Saudi search and rescue teams to extract and help these victims. Further, six individuals were reported drowned or missing in the waters of the Jaballah Dam, requiring dive teams to conduct recovery operations.
The Saudi delegation arrived yesterday via a private aircraft at Tabarka International Airport, bringing with them equipment for the exercise, including aircraft, cars, and trucks.