Dubai: A five-year-old Egyptian boy died after falling into a manhole in the village of Kufur Al Ghab in Damietta Governorate, northeast of Egypt, local media reported.
The incident happened on Sunday evening when Emad Mahmoud Halim was playing outside his family house. Passers-by rushed to help get him out of the sewer after they heard him screaming.
Civil defence teams, along with a security force, accompanied by a team from the Damietta Drinking Water and Sanitation Company, made all out efforts to pull out the boy. The teams used heavy equipment to dig, as well as machines to drain out water to reach the boy who was drifted inside the narrow pipes. After eight hours of relentless efforts, rescuers found the boy's body.
Emad’s death has angered residents, who described him as “Rayan of Damietta”, citing the death of Moroccan boy Rayan who died after he was trapped in a well for four days. They blamed local authorities for negligence as they fail to cover open manholes.
Damietta Governor Manal Awad issued instructions to form an investigation committee to determine the causes of the incident and find out its circumstances and who is responsible for it.
