SHARJAH // Eight people were injured when nine lorries and a bus were involved in a crash, described by police as one of the most serious accidents to occur in Sharjah this year.
The accident happened yesterday when a water tanker travelling at high speed crashed into a bus carrying workers on the Sharjah to Dhaid road, according to police. The workers' bus then swerved into a concrete barrier before coming to rest in the middle of the road. Eight more lorries travelling at high speed were unable to stop in time and piled into the wreckage.
The injured men - mainly Indians and Pakistanis - were air-lifted to Al Qassimi and Kuwaiti hospitals. Although no one died in the crash, Sharjah Police said it was one of the most serious large-scale road accidents to occur in the northern emirate.
As emergency services, including rescue helicopters, headed for the scene, drivers and passengers from other vehicles helped to pull the injured from the wreckage, witnesses said.
One motorist, who did not wish to be named, described how three men struggled to drag an unconscious passenger from the wreckage of one of the lorries.
"It's a miracle everyone got out of that alive," he added.
"When I saw the remains of all those big vehicles piled up, my first thought was that several people must have been killed. It probably would have been a different story if those who were not injured had not jumped so quickly to the aid of those who were."
Police said five of the injured men were taken to Al Qassimi Hospital, and the remaining three to Kuwaiti Hospital.
The accident occurred on the Sharjah to Dhaid road between the third and fourth bridge.
"It all started when a water tanker, coming from the central region, driven by Pakistani Mohammed Kamran, 30, collided with a workers' bus," said an official.
"Eight more trucks coming behind him piled in [to the tanker] as they were also driving at a high speed. Nine trucks in total were involved in the accident."
Six people in the bus were injured, including the driver, Mohammed Akbar Khan, 39, whose injuries were described as severe.
Police said the injured workers all were staying in the country illegally. An officer at the scene said he would report to his superiors who would then decide whether to file charges against the illegal workers and their employers.
A 30-year-old Pakistani, identified only as Hussein, who was driving a lorry that crashed after the initial accident, suffered serious injuries.
Traffic on the road from Dhaid to Sharjah was delayed for about 40 minutes as police removed the damaged vehicles.
Yesterday's crash came just a few months after the General Directorate of Sharjah Police mounted a road safety campaign aimed specifically at lorries and buses.
The campaign raised safety awareness by distributing brochures in Arabic, English, Urdu and Hindi to drivers of heavy goods vehicles. A senior police official has appealed to all drivers in Sharjah, particularly those in charge of lorries, buses and other large vehicles to observe traffic rules and avoid speeding.
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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
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The bio
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Best thing about your job: Getting to help people. My mum always told me never to pass up an opportunity to do a good deed.
Best part of life in the UAE: The weather. The constant sunshine is amazing and there is always something to do, you have so many options when it comes to how to spend your day.
Favourite holiday destination: Malaysia. I went there for my honeymoon and ended up volunteering to teach local children for a few hours each day. It is such a special place and I plan to retire there one day.
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The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
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Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
THE BIO
Ambition: To create awareness among young about people with disabilities and make the world a more inclusive place
Job Title: Human resources administrator, Expo 2020 Dubai
First jobs: Co-ordinator with Magrudy Enterprises; HR coordinator at Jumeirah Group
Entrepreneur: Started his own graphic design business
Favourite singer: Avril Lavigne
Favourite travel destination: Germany and Saudi Arabia
Family: Six sisters
Sheer grandeur
The Owo building is 14 storeys high, seven of which are below ground, with the 30,000 square feet of amenities located subterranean, including a 16-seat private cinema, seven lounges, a gym, games room, treatment suites and bicycle storage.
A clear distinction between the residences and the Raffles hotel with the amenities operated separately.
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
What is graphene?
Graphene is extracted from graphite and is made up of pure carbon.
It is 200 times more resistant than steel and five times lighter than aluminum.
It conducts electricity better than any other material at room temperature.
It is thought that graphene could boost the useful life of batteries by 10 per cent.
Graphene can also detect cancer cells in the early stages of the disease.
The material was first discovered when Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov were 'playing' with graphite at the University of Manchester in 2004.
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
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How green is the expo nursery?
Some 400,000 shrubs and 13,000 trees in the on-site nursery
An additional 450,000 shrubs and 4,000 trees to be delivered in the months leading up to the expo
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Approximately 340 species of shrubs and trees selected for diverse landscape
The nursery team works exclusively with organic fertilisers and pesticides
All shrubs and trees supplied by Dubai Municipality
Most sourced from farms, nurseries across the country
Plants and trees are re-potted when they arrive at nursery to give them room to grow
Some mature trees are in open areas or planted within the expo site
Green waste is recycled as compost
Treated sewage effluent supplied by Dubai Municipality is used to meet the majority of the nursery’s irrigation needs
Construction workforce peaked at 40,000 workers
About 65,000 people have signed up to volunteer
Main themes of expo is ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’ and three subthemes of opportunity, mobility and sustainability.
Expo 2020 Dubai to open in October 2020 and run for six months
