A helicopter readies to lift a victim to hospital.

Rashid Al Nuaimi, Staff Reporter

A 16-member multinational hiking team in the Sultanate of Oman met a tragic end on Friday as a result of inclement weather. A torrential downpour swept away five climbers, four of whom perished, while the rest sustained varying degrees of injury.

The Royal Oman Police (ROP) have confirmed that the victims of the incident were transported by police aircraft to Nizwa Hospital. This was after the group faced heavy rain in Wadi Tanouf in Nizwa governorate. Owing to this, an Omani citizen and three other Arab nationals died, while another sustained serious injuries.

Meanwhile, the Civil Defence and Ambulance Authority has stated that the rescue teams of the Civil Defence and Ambulance Department in Ad-Dakhiliyah Governorate, in collaboration with local residents, responded to a report on the missing mountain hikers in Nizwa. Of these individuals, four were confirmed dead, while four others were transported to a medical facility with injuries that ranged from moderate to critical.

Ambulance workers tend to a victim.

The Authority has urged citizens and residents to adhere to safety guidelines and to exercise caution by checking weather conditions before engaging in this activity. Furthermore, it has recommended that individuals register their location and the names of participants through the Nedaa application. This will facilitate communication with the Authority's operations centre in case of an emergency.

In addition, it advises individuals engaged in mountain hiking in mountainous areas, from the lowest point of departure to the highest peak, to carry the requisite medical and ambulatory tools. It further recommends that these individuals take care to reach locations that do not disrupt the transmission of wireless phones. This helps speeding up their access to the affected site in the event of an incident that requires urgent intervention by search and rescue personnel from the Civil Defence and Ambulance Authority.