A young Emirati man who is missing in the waters off the southern coast of Oman may have drowned trying to save his brother, who is also missing at sea, according to a witness.
Omani authorities are continuing to search for the brothers, Abdullah Mohammed Al Dhaheri, 21, and Mansour Mohammed Al Dhaheri, 19, who have been missing since Thursday.
Saeed Jumaa Ali Al Yahiyaei, a friend of the brothers who accompanied them on a recreational trip during the Eid al Fitr holiday to the state of Mirbat in Oman on the coastal line of the Dhofar province, east of Salalah, told 24 news the brothers were swept out to sea by bad weather and rough waves.
Mr Al Yahiyaei said the trip began when the group of six men arrived in Salalah by land on Wednesday night.
“The next day, we decided to go for a stroll in the green landscape, made lunch and then went to the beach for swimming and exercising,” Mr Al Yahiyaei said. “Four of the men went into the water, including Abdullah and Mansour. I didn’t.
“A few moments later, their voices could be heard because the sea was rough and the waves were high. They all knew how to swim, but the waves were too powerful. Three of them got out of the water within 20 minutes, including Abdullah, but his brother Mansour was trapped in a riptide that pulled him in.
“Abdullah wouldn’t leave his brother. He went back in the water to try to rescue his brother, but the riptide pulled both of them downwards. Mansour’s head disappeared under water after 30 minutes, Abdullah’s head went down after an hour.”
Mr Al Yahiyaei said emergency crews arrived an hour later and have been searching for the young men ever since.
“We didn’t inform their family until the next day,” said Mr Al Yahiyaei. “Their uncle came to Merbat via Salalah airport last night and joined the volunteer teams searching for them.”
Omani civil defence authorities said on Saturday that the search was continuing.
“Foot patrols conducted along the rocks in Mirbat as part of the search operation for the two Emiratis lost at sea. No trace of them so far,” the Oman Public Authority of Civil Defence and Ambulance said on its official Twitter page.
The other four members of the group were rescued from the water and are reported to be safe and well. “The waves were normal and we were entering the sea, but then all of a sudden the waves got rough and pulled in my cousins and me,” one of the rescued Emiratis, Mohammed Ali Al Dhaheri, told Abu Dhabi TV’s Oloum Al Dar news programme.
A helicopter from the Oman Royal Air Force was sent to join teams from the General Authority for Civil Defence and Rescue Oman on Thursday to help with search operations, reported Al Ittihad, the Arabic language sister paper of The National.
In a tweet, the Oman civil defence said there was a signboard at the spot warning people not to go out into the sea.
newsdesk@thenational.ae
Additional reporting by The Times of Oman and 24 news
