Fact Check: Video of Saudi Arabia passed off as miraculous rescue operation in flood-hit Khammam
News Meter found that the viral video was from Saudi Arabia and not Telangana.
By Newsmeter Network Published on 5 Sep 2024 6:58 AM GMT
Claim: The video shows the visuals of the Khammam rescue operation by a JCB driver, who saved 9 lives.
Fact: The viral video is from Saudi Arabia taken during the Bisha Floods earlier this year, it is unrelated to Telangana.
Telangana and Andhra Pradesh are reeling under severe floods, following incessant rains in the last week. As per the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), there was a formation of a depression in the Bay of Bengal which caused rains. Hundreds of villages got submerged and more than 35 people lost their lives.
Khammam town in Telangana was affected by floods, with the river streams and the flood waters overflowing into the residential colonies. According to the news reports, around nine people were struck on a bridge in Prakash Nagar, when it was submerged in the overflowing Munneru river water. All the members were later rescued by a JCB driver hailing from Haryana.
In this context, a video is circulating on social media, claiming to show a rescue operation in Khammam using a JCB. The video depicts a dramatic scene. Four people atop a car submerged in muddy water were desperately awaiting rescue.
Sharing this video, an X user wrote, āREAL HERO! 9 people were stranded for hours in the Munneru flood. Ignoring all advice, Subhan Khan drove his JCB alone & rescued them. He said: "If I die, I die alone. Else, I come back with nine. Subhan Khan, from Haryana, working in KhammamāSalute to him. #KhammamFloodsā
Several people have shared this video claiming it to be from Khammam. Links to such posts can be found here and here(archives here and here).
Fact Check
News Meter found that the viral video was from Saudi Arabia and not Telangana.
A Google reverse image search of the screenshot of the viral video revealed that the video originated from Saudi Arabia. We found that this video was shared by a news portal, Gulf News on April 28, 2024. According to the report, the video was taken during Floods in Bisha province in Saudi when a citizen rescued four individuals who were struck in floods. The screenshots of the viral video and an X embed of the viral video were also found in this report, stating it to be from Saudi.
Further, we also found that the same visuals were also shared by several other local Arabic news outlets, which corroborate the same details. Per reports, a man named Ayed bin Daghash Al Aklabi saved the lives of four people trapped inside a car moments before a flood swept away their vehicle in a valley in Bisha.
Meanwhile, we have also found that this video was also uploaded on YouTube on April 28, 2024, by a channel named, Abuloui Notebook (Translated from Arabic). It contains the same visuals as the viral video.
The original footage of the rescue operation conducted by a JCB driver from Haryana, Subhan Khan was uploaded to the YouTube Channel of NDTV on September 4 and can be seen below. BBC News Telugu also interviewed with Khan.
Hence, we conclude that the viral video is from Saudi Arabia and it is unrelated to Telangana.
