Al-OLA, 13 January — Prince Salman ibn Muhammad Al-Saud had a narrow escape from a road accident recently when the jeep he was traveling exploded after it overturned following a tire burst, a local newspaper reported yesterday.
The jeep carrying the prince and a companion overturned on the Ola-Tabuk road. The area, 120 km away from Al-Ola city, is known to motorists as Terror Triangle due to frequent crimes there.
Cap. Kamil Al-Boushi of North Western Command and Abdullah Najdi of Tabuk police, who were passing by, pulled out the prince and his aide from the overturned vehicle seconds before its fuel tank exploded. The two were unconscious after sustaining injuries from the accident.
“On seeing flames inside the jeep, we rushed to save the passengers. We were sure of the imminent blast and we saw them lying unconscious. We did not think further but leapt to the side of the prince and his co-traveler, and snatched them away. The next second, the jeep exploded with a loud noise,” Al-Watan daily quoted Al-Boushi as saying.
The two officers took them immediately to a place to give them first aid. It was there that they identified one of the victims was a prince.
Lt. Col. Saad Al-Najdi, director of Taima police, said he rushed to the spot on getting a report on the accident. The prince was airlifted to Riyadh as per the orders of Tabuk Governor Prince Fahd ibn Sultan.
The governor thanked Al-Boushi and his companion for their courageous act, the newspaper added.
