Fishermen hurt in Khor Fakkan boat explosion

An Emirati and a Bengali fishermen were injured when their boat exploded yesterday afternoon in the water off Khor Fakkan.

Mohammed Al Saadi, who was injured after his boat exploded, is being treated at Khor Fakkan Hospital for leg and jaw fractures. Satish Kumar / The National

FUJAIRAH // An Emirati and a Bangladeshi fisherman were injured when their boat exploded on Monday afternoon in the water off Khor Fakkan.

Both men were thrown into the sea from the effect of the blast. The Emirati, Mohammed Al Saadi, 23, was seriously injured and suffered leg and jaw fractures while the Bengali received minor injuries.

“We left the coast at about 3pm for a fishing trip, and after two kilometres of sailing we stopped the engine to start fishing but we decided to move forwards and find a better spot. But when I tried to restart the engine it exploded,” said Mr Al Saadi.

“The effect of the explosion threw me and the other fisherman into the water and I couldn’t feel my left leg and there was blood everywhere,” he said.

“I was closer to the explosion, that’s why I got badly hurt and we lost all sources of communication in the accident and started praying for help.

“After an hour a fisherman passed by and helped us and informed the coastguard. But the ambulance took another hour to arrive and I reached Khor Fakkan Hospital at about 6pm,” he said.

His wife said she went into deep shock when she heard about the explosion from her husband’s uncle. “I was afraid that he could be suffering badly. We rushed to the hospital and the nurse told us he was undergoing a surgery, She said..

“We got married seven months ago and I can’t imagine my life without him. He is in pain now and I’m really sad because I can’t do anything to help him. The doctor said that he needs more than one month to recover and I hope he will recover soon and pray day and night for that to happen.”

Mr Al Saadi believed the explosion was due to an electrical fault in the boat’s engine. “I’ve sailed and fished since 2005. My father and uncle are also fishermen and this is the first time this sort of accident has happened,” he said.

Mr Al Saadi is registered as a fisherman with Fujairah Fishermen Association and said that he had check-ups and maintenance to his boat every three months. The last check-up was before Ramadan.

A spokesman for the Fujairah Fishermen Association said explosions did not happen easily – unless there was some fuel accumulated in the boat.

“An electrical fault can’t do such harm unless there was some fuel around it,” said Salem Obadi.

“We always advise the fishermen to be extra alert and aware when they refill the fuel tank and remove any fuel leftovers on the boats ground and keep the fuel tank elevated off the ground,” he said.

The badly damaged boat is now docked near Khor Fakkan Coastguard at Luluyah beach. Its engine was destroyed and the vessel will need extensive repair in order to sail again.