Traffic police blamed recklessness and speeding on a four-car crash this afternoon that led to three people being taken to hospital.
None of the injuries were considered life-threatening and the victims were being treated at Sheikh Khalifa Medical City, police on the scene said.
Seatbelts likely saved lives in the incident, according to Mohammed Salah, an Abu Dhabi traffic investigator at the scene.
"You can see that without seatbelts, they will go outside the car and damage the glass," he said. "They were wearing them so, of course, it saved them."
The collision, which occurred at the intersection of Airport Road and 15th Street at about 12.30pm, snarled traffic for nearly an hour at the crossing.
A silver Toyota sport utility vehicle heading east on Airport Road had mounted the central reservation and collided with traffic from the opposite side. A black Lexus appeared to have spun and settled until it was facing the SUV in the same lane. Both cars were severely damaged, with the black sedan losing a front tyre and spilling fuel onto the road.
On the other side of the central reservation, the windshield of a white Toyota Camry was smashed through and some blood had spattered on the hood and side door. All of the airbags appeared to have deployed.
The fourth driver, Abdul Monem Salem, 24, was completely unharmed although his blue Mercedes was seriously damaged in the front wheel after rear-ending the white Camry.
"Some people were taken away but everybody's okay," Mr Salem said, before leaving to file an accident report with police.
Traffic investigators on the scene did not speculate on how the accident occurred or who was at fault, as the accident is still under investigation, but they said speed was likely a factor.
"We have four cars involved," added Mr Salah. "Somebody crossed the signal, and somebody comes and speeds too much and so he hit a car here, and then [another car] goes and that makes another two cars hit."
Traffic at the intersection began to flow again by about 1.30pm, after police dumped sand onto the road to cover the spilled fuel.
mkwong@thenational.ae
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Five famous companies founded by teens
There are numerous success stories of teen businesses that were created in college dorm rooms and other modest circumstances. Below are some of the most recognisable names in the industry:
- Facebook: Mark Zuckerberg and his friends started Facebook when he was a 19-year-old Harvard undergraduate.
- Dell: When Michael Dell was an undergraduate student at Texas University in 1984, he started upgrading computers for profit. He starting working full-time on his business when he was 19. Eventually, his company became the Dell Computer Corporation and then Dell Inc.
- Subway: Fred DeLuca opened the first Subway restaurant when he was 17. In 1965, Mr DeLuca needed extra money for college, so he decided to open his own business. Peter Buck, a family friend, lent him $1,000 and together, they opened Pete’s Super Submarines. A few years later, the company was rebranded and called Subway.
- Mashable: In 2005, Pete Cashmore created Mashable in Scotland when he was a teenager. The site was then a technology blog. Over the next few decades, Mr Cashmore has turned Mashable into a global media company.
- Oculus VR: Palmer Luckey founded Oculus VR in June 2012, when he was 19. In August that year, Oculus launched its Kickstarter campaign and raised more than $1 million in three days. Facebook bought Oculus for $2 billion two years later.
Qosty Byogaani
Starring: Hani Razmzi, Maya Nasir and Hassan Hosny
Four stars
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Dirham Stretcher tips for having a baby in the UAE
Selma Abdelhamid, the group's moderator, offers her guide to guide the cost of having a young family:
• Buy second hand stuff
They grow so fast. Don't get a second hand car seat though, unless you 100 per cent know it's not expired and hasn't been in an accident.
• Get a health card and vaccinate your child for free at government health centres
Ms Ma says she discovered this after spending thousands on vaccinations at private clinics.
• Join mum and baby coffee mornings provided by clinics, babysitting companies or nurseries.
Before joining baby classes ask for a free trial session. This way you will know if it's for you or not. You'll be surprised how great some classes are and how bad others are.
• Once baby is ready for solids, cook at home
Take the food with you in reusable pouches or jars. You'll save a fortune and you'll know exactly what you're feeding your child.
Pathaan
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Siddharth%20Anand%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Shah%20Rukh%20Khan%2C%20Deepika%20Padukone%2C%20John%20Abraham%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Zayed Sustainability Prize
Mina Cup winners
Under 12 – Minerva Academy
Under 14 – Unam Pumas
Under 16 – Fursan Hispania
Under 18 – Madenat
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Constant Variable (CVT)
Power: 141bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: Dh64,500
On sale: Now
