Two die in RAK after well caves in on them

Two labourers died after being buried alive when the well they were digging collapsed on them yesterday.

The accident happened in the grounds of a residential property in Ras Al Khaimah at 10.30am.

Capt Mohammed Al Nuaimi, acting director of Al Mamoura Police Station, said the bodies of the victims, aged 25 and 28, were pulled out of the 20-metre deep well.

“The men were ordered to dig a well with a depth of 20 metres without getting the necessary permissions, safety precautions or informing the authorities,” Capt Al Nuaimi said.

“Our rescue teams made huge efforts to pull them out of the collapsed well but they were already dead before we arrived.

“Investigations are still ongoing to determine the circumstances and the site has been secured.”

Brig Gen Ghanim Ahmed Ghanem, director of Central Operations at RAK Police, urged construction companies and home owners to apply for permission before undertaking such work.

The site was cordoned off and safety procedures put in place to prevent further incidents.

The bodies were removed and police are now investigating the incident.

Last year, RAK Civil Defence teams rescued a 48-year-old Filipina housemaid who fell into an artesian water well in the Halila area, in the north of the northern emirate.

In 2015, an Asian worker succumbed to fatal injuries he received after falling into an 18m deep well and drowned in the Khat area, 15km south-east of Ras Al Khaimah city.

To combat the digging of illegal domestic groundwater wells – and the associated health and safety concerns, – the Environment Agency Abu Dhabi last year launched an awareness campaign called Seal a Well to Save a Life.

The campaign urged community members to co-operate and report any incidents of illegal groundwater wells so they could be sealed off to ensure residents’ safety.