Fact Check: Viral video showing JCB driver saving people from floodwaters is not from Khammam
Floods wreaked havoc in the states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. The Munneru river, typically a dry tributary of the Krishna river, got flooded in an unprecedented manner leading to flash floods. It is worth noting that there was no such tragic experience in the last 70 years.
JCB
Floods wreaked havoc in the states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. The Munneru river, typically a dry tributary of the Krishna river, got flooded in an unprecedented manner leading to flash floods. It is worth noting that there was no such tragic experience in the last 70 years. Two helicopters from the Indian Navy were flown to Khammam in Telangana to rescue people trapped on the rooftops in the floods of Munneru river.
A local man emerged a hero by saving 9 people stuck in the flood using his JCB. Subhan Khan bravely drove a JCB close to the bridge and rescued the stranded individuals from the Prakash Nagar bridge on Munneru river. As the news of Subhan Khan’s bravery spread to other places, many people, including politicians, heaped praises on him for his courage, saving others lives risking his own.
After this incident, several social media users started sharing a video of a JCB driver saving 4-5 people from the middle of a stream in floods. The video was shot in broad day light. The caption shared by some YouTube users read: “ఖమ్మంలో ప్రకాష్ నగర్ బ్రిడ్జ పై ప్రాణాలను ప్రాణంగా పెట్టి ఒక్కడివే వెళ్ళి తొమ్మిది మందిని కాపాడావు”
పోతే నా ప్రాణం తిరిగి వస్తే అందరం అని అనుకున్న లక్ష్యాన్ని జయించిన వీరుడుకి వందనం
Fact check:
The claim is Misleading. The viral video is not related to Khammam incident of a JCB driver saving 9 persons stranded in flood.
When we searched for more information on the Subhan Khan’s bravery, we found an X post by the Executive editor of NDTV sharing the videos of the Subhan Khan rescuing 9 people stranded on the Praksah Nagar bridge in Khammam. The caption of the post “If I go, it is one life, if I return, I will save nine lives: this was the courage shown by #Subhankhan who took a JCB to bring back 9 people marooned on Prakash Nagar Bridge #Khammam from early hrs on Sept1; You can hear daughter brimming with pride #MyDaddyBravest #RealLifeHero”. The videos of the resuce shared were shot in the night but not in broad sunlight.
The same videos were shared by several news publications. According to NDTV report, 9 people were stranded on the Prakash Nagar bridge on Munneru river. They recorded a video requesting the government to rescue them. Even though the state government tried to send an helicopter, it could not reach the spot due to bad weather. Then, Subhan Khan from Haryana decided to take his bulldozer and rescue the stranded without caring the warnings of others.
The video report published by Samayam Telugu states that the stranded persons had to stay on the bridge in the floodwater till the night. And the operation of JCB by Subhan Khan took place in the dark of the night.
When we extracted the keyframes from the viral video and searched using Google reverse image search, we found that the viral video is an old one and has been on the internet from April 2024. A longer version of the viral video was published by a YouTube channel named Moo Andal on April 29, 2024, with the title "4 men trapped in the floods got rescued by Saudi loader operator".
According to Gulfnews, a local man became a hero for using his bulldozer to rescue four stranded persons during the floods in Bisha Province, Asir region, Saudi arabia. The video shows dramatic scene where a car, stuck and submerged in mud water while the four passengers stood on its roof in hope of rescue. Then Ayed bin Daghash AL Aklabi aided by two civil defense personnel navigated through the floodwaters and reached the victims.
Therefore, the viral video deos not show Subhan Khan with his bulldozer saving the persons stranded on the Prakash Nagar bridge, Khammam. The video is from Saudi arabia. The claim is misleading.