Rain-related crashes kill two in UAQ; houses destroyed in RAK
umm al quwain / ras al khaimah — Two people, including an Emirati and an Arab boy, were killed in rain-related traffic accidents in Umm Al Quwain.
In the first mishap, an Emirati young man, who was riding his motorbike, lost control over his motorbike after running through a big pond of rainwater, skidded off the road, and rammed into an iron barrier.
Col. Saeed Obaid bin Aran, director of Traffic and Patrols Department of the UAQ Police Directorate General, said the first accident took place on the Emirates road while the second happened on the Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan road.
“The Emirati young man could not make it and succumbed to the fatal injuries he received after ramming into the iron road barrier at a high speed.”
An Arab boy was killed in the second accident after the car his father was driving flipped over several times, and he was thrown out of the window, he added.
“The little boy sustained serious injuries and bled excessively that he was declared dead shortly being admitted to the Sheikh Khalifa Hospital in Umm Al Quwain.”
Initial enactment of the accident showed that the father did not secure his son in the car. “If the little boy had been seat-belted in the car, he would not have been thrown out of the window.”
Col Bin Arab urged all drivers to be more careful and attentive on the road during showers and unstable weather, and pay extra attention to ponds of rainwater so as not to lose control over the steering wheel.
More traffic patrols have been deployed across the roads and highways of the emirates day and night on a shift basis to attend to all reports, he added. The department of public works and services had, meanwhile, drained out all accumulating rainwater, mainly at Eissa district, Souk area, and Al Sirah area at the emirate’s entrance.
In Ras Al Khaimah, heavy showers have reportedly destroyed parts of 25 houses and killed many domestic animals, that were washed away by the floods. ahmedshaaban@khaleejtimes.com