Our Bureau
New Delhi
A 27-year-old man from Telangana, Mohammad Shehzad Khan, tragically lost his life in the harsh Rub’ al Khali desert of Saudi Arabia due to severe dehydration and exhaustion. Khan, along with his Sudanese colleague, had been working as a telecommunications professional in the gulf nation for the past three years.
The incident occurred between August 19-21 when the duo ventured into the treacherous “Empty Quarter” desert to fix a cellular tower. Their ordeal began when their GPS signal failed while navigating through the vast Rub’ al Khali desert, which spans over 650,000 square kilometers across Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman, and the UAE, with daytime temperatures soaring as high as 55°C.
As if the GPS malfunction wasn’t enough, matters took a turn for the worse when the duo’s mobile phone batteries died, leaving them unable to call for help. To make things even more dire, their vehicle eventually ran out of fuel, stranding them in the scorching desert heat without food or water.
“The bodies of the two men were discovered on a prayer rug,” said Bheema Reddy, president of the Immigrants Welfare Forum. Expressing sorrow over the incident, he added: “Their company should have had better supervised in place and sent out a rescue team once they realised that the two were not in touch for a long time.”
While the pair tried to fight for survival, the extreme temperature and lack of help resulted in their deaths due to severe dehydration and exhaustion. Four days later, their bodies were found next to the vehicle.
