10-year-old "critical" after wadi rescue

Update: Rescued 10-year-old passes away in Oman

Muscat: A 10-year-old Omani boy who got into difficulty while swimming in a wadi pool was rescued by locals.

The Public Authority for Civil Defence and Ambulance (PACDA) said that the child had been successfully rescued by people in the area, before being rushed to hospital in a "critical condition".

In a statement, PACDA said: "Following the announcement of the drowning of a 10-year-old in Nizwa, when PACDA officials arrived at the scene, we learned that the child was still alive. Those on site in the area were able to pull him out.

"He was immediately rushed to the hospital in critical condition," the statement added.

Speaking to Times Of Oman, a PACDA official said that it was "still unclear if the child was saved in the hospital, but he was in critical condition when he reached the hospital.”

The official also said that the child is Omani. He clarified that PACDA had originally received reports that the child had drowned in Wadi Al Muaidan in Nizwa, Al Dakhiliyah, before learning that locals had managed to pull him ashore.

Al Dakhiliyah has witnessed spurts of torrential rainfall over the past week, and videos of flooding due to rainfall have been shared on social media of families in Nizwa.