Authors
Vaibhav is a part of Newschecker’s English team, where he spots and debunks all kinds of misinformation, making the rounds on the internet. A Journalism graduate from St. Xavier's College, Mumbai, he holds an M.A degree in Philosophy and an M.Phil from Delhi University.
Amid heavy rainfall and flash floods in Oman recently, a video of a brave man risking his life to save two children from drowning in a raging river is going viral on social media along with users claiming that the man who saved the children is their father. Newschecker found this claim to be untrue.
The video has been shared by a Facebook Page called ‘Goan Reporter’ which is a Goan Online TV News Channel (Goan Reporter) as well as an Online News Website in Goa which has 129,241 followers on its Facebook page. The video which has garnered 1,300 likes and 116 shares along with 40,000 views has been shared along with the caption ‘( A Fathers love for his Children ) Watch this viral video of how a father tries to save his two kids from flood waters’.
The Facebook post can be seen here.
Newschecker found similar claims on Facebook with similar captions.
Also Read: Viral Image Does Not Show Bal Thackeray ‘Blessing’ Eknath Shinde
Fact Check /Verification
We started our investigation by conducting a reverse search on the key-frames of the video on Google and found an article by Times of Oman titled Man risks life to save two children stuck in a wadi in Oman uploaded on 25th June, 2022 on their website.
According to the article, on Friday, a resident of the Al Dakhiliyah Governorate put his life in danger to save two kids from a flash flood in Wadi Bahla. The youth was identified as Ali bin Nasser Al-Wardi.
The article further added that without his assistance, there was little possibility that the two kids would survive their ordeal after falling helplessly into the wadi’s swift current.
The two kids were clutching flimsy palm tree trunk fragments in the hopes that it would give them a second chance at life. At that moment, Al Wardi yelled, “O Ali, put a rope around your waist.” above the waves. “I have a rope and I will bring it to you right away,” a nearby resident yelled. Al Wardi continued”I then took off my dishdasha, and my father forcefully grabbed one end of the rope while he knotted it around my waist.”
Al Wardi claimed his only concern was saving the two kids.
Newschecker also found an article by Gulf News uploaded on 26th June, 2022 titled Omani hailed as hero after he saves two children from drowning in flash floods.
The article contained a tweet posted by the official handle of @ImeGrop posted along with the caption ‘A heroic scene of an Omani youth saving two children from certain death’ when translated, which contained the same video in the viral video.
Newschecker also found some reports which claimed that the youth who saved the two children was a photographer by profession who was present at the site clicking pictures, but we could not find any news reports by local news agencies which mentioned his profession.
The news reports can be found here and here.
Newschecker further found an article by Times of Oman uploaded on 26th June, 2022 titled CDAA honours Ali Al Wardi.
According to the article, Ali bin Nasser Al Wardi was honoured by the Civil Defence and Ambulance Authority (CDAA) for saving the lives of two children who were about to drown in the valley in the Wilayat of Bahla, Al Dakhiliyah Governorate.
The dean Salim bin Yahya Al Hinai, head of the Authority, expressed his thanks and appreciation for the heroic role and his professionalism while carrying out this great humanitarian duty, praising him for the sacrifices he made in order to save these children, according to a statement from CDAA. Ali bin Nasser Al Wardi, an Omani citizen, saved the lives of children from the valley in the Wilayat of Bahla with courage.
Ali bin Nasser Al Wardi was not identified as the father of the children in any of the media reports.
Conclusion
Newschecker’s investigation reveals that the man who saved the lives of two children from drowning in a flash flood in Oman is not their father, but a stranger present at the incident.
Result: Missing Context
Our Sources
Times of Oman report, Man risks life to save two children stuck in a wadi in Oman, (25th June, 2022)
Gulf News report, Omani hailed as hero after he saves two children from drowning in flash floods, (26th June, 2022)
Tweet by IMEGrop (25th June, 2022)
Times of Oman report, CDAA honours Ali Al Wardi, (26th June, 2022)
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Authors
Vaibhav is a part of Newschecker’s English team, where he spots and debunks all kinds of misinformation, making the rounds on the internet. A Journalism graduate from St. Xavier's College, Mumbai, he holds an M.A degree in Philosophy and an M.Phil from Delhi University.
