Drownings averted as police rescue four men

Drownings averted as police rescue four men

They had ignored the red flag warning and went into the sea

By Muna Ahmed

Published Sunday, February 13, 2011

 

Dubai marine rescue teams were kept busy on Saturday as winds whipped up the seas even as beachgoers threw caution to the winds and eneterded the treacherous waters.

Four men almost lost their lives in three separate drowning accidents. They had ignored the red flag up on Dubai beaches, a top police official said adding that people must take these warnings seriously.

Captain Yahya Hussain, Head of Sea Rescue Department of Dubai Police told Emirates24|7 that they face major issues with the beachgoers, especially tourists during such times.

“For many days, we have been warning people not to swim off the beach. However, four people were about to lose their lives in three different accident which took place on Saturday. Most of them are tourists. Despite the weather being cool here, for them, it is normal as they are used to cold weather in their home countries,” he said.

Captain Hussain added that the first accident took place at 3pm on Saturday.

“In the first accident, a Palestinian and a Libyan, both working for a media company in Dubai, went water-skiing. Due to the high waves and strong winds, they lost control of their skis and were about to drown. Fortunately, our lifeguards saw what happened and went to rescue them.”

He added that the second accident took place at 4.30pm when a British tourist went swimming in the beach near Hilton Hotel.

“The third accident on Saturday took place at 5.50pm where the man was about 100 metres away from the beach. He was struggling to swim back, but then fainted. Fortunately, our lifeguards were very close and saved him and called the ambulance for further assistance.”

He pointed out that all the hotels in the Jumeirah Beach Residence area must increase the number of their lifeguards on duty.

“I have noticed that there are not many lif guards of the hotels in these areas. All the accidental drowing cases were rescued by police lifeguards. This is not right.”

He added that the people are also careless in some incidents. “They should never get into the sea when the red flag is up. This is too serious, and they put their lives in real danger by doing so.”

Captain Hussain said that the sea will remain unstable until the next month.

“In Dubai, we experience this situation every year around this time from January till April. The sea will not be stable for many days during this period because of the seasonal winds. After April, the sea turns to a stable condition,” he said.