DUBAI // A bus crash on Tuesday morning in which seven people died and 35 were injured has police appealing to drivers to check the safety of their tyres.
The driver lost control of the bus after a tyre burst, then collided with a lorry in the opposite lane on Al Yalayis Road, close to Dubai Investments Park in Jebel Ali, said Col Saif Al Mazrouei, director of Dubai traffic police.
The bus was carrying 41 people working for Transguard Group, a cash, security and outsourcing services company.
The employees were from India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Pakistan. Those injured were taken to Rashid, NMC and Al Zahra hospitals.
A doctor at Rashid Hospital’s emergency ward said it received six workers with severe injuries, including to the head and chest, and broken legs. Others were in comas.
“All of them received treatment and operations were performed on them,” the doctor said.
“Five of the workers who were treated at Rashid Hospital are still in a coma. About 10 people affected in the crash suffered minor injuries.”
Brig Mohammed Al Razouqi, director of Dubai Police rescue, said the driver and 21 passengers were rescued from the bus after being trapped inside.
Rescue teams were sent after the crash was reported to police at 8am. Hydraulic cutting equipment was used to free those trapped in the wreckage, said Brig Al Razouqi.
Accident investigators were sent to the site to determine the exact cause of the crash.
Poor tyres have long been blamed for road accidents in the UAE, particularly in the summer months when the hot road takes its toll and tyre maintenance is essential.
Many commercial lorry accidents are caused by unsafe tyres and wheels, according to RoadSafetyUAE.
Drivers should not exceed the maximum speed recommended by tyre makers, and correct air pressure should be maintained to avoid overheated tyres or dangerous blowouts.
Worn tyres with damaged treads or cracks and bald spots might not have adequate traction on the road, making braking and steering dangerous, the organisation advises.
All motorists have been encouraged to replace tyres every two years, or sooner if there have been several punctures or repairs.
Tyre air pressure must also be kept at the correct level according to the vehicle load, experts say.
Abu Dhabi Police say that last year 14 people were killed and seven seriously injured in 28 accidents blamed on faulty tyres.
Driving with expired or faulty tyres in Abu Dhabi is an offence punishable by vehicle impoundment and a Dh200 fine.
Dubai Police said that 37 people have died and 492 were injured in road accidents during the first four months of the year.
Forty-nine bus accidents have taken place so far this year, in which seven people died and 100 were injured.
Last year, there were 133 bus accidents, in which 24 people died and 258 were injured.
nalramahi@thenational.ae
Medicus AI
Started: 2016
Founder(s): Dr Baher Al Hakim, Dr Nadine Nehme and Makram Saleh
Based: Vienna, Austria; started in Dubai
Sector: Health Tech
Staff: 119
Funding: €7.7 million (Dh31m)
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Xpanceo
Started: 2018
Founders: Roman Axelrod, Valentyn Volkov
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Smart contact lenses, augmented/virtual reality
Funding: $40 million
Investor: Opportunity Venture (Asia)
Kat Wightman's tips on how to create zones in large spaces
- Area carpets or rugs are the easiest way to segregate spaces while also unifying them.
- Lighting can help define areas. Try pendant lighting over dining tables, and side and floor lamps in living areas.
- Keep the colour palette the same in a room, but combine different tones and textures in different zone. A common accent colour dotted throughout the space brings it together.
- Don’t be afraid to use furniture to break up the space. For example, if you have a sofa placed in the middle of the room, a console unit behind it will give good punctuation.
- Use a considered collection of prints and artworks that work together to form a cohesive journey.
Fight Night
FIGHT NIGHT
Four title fights:
Amir Khan v Billy Dib - WBC International title
Hughie Fury v Samuel Peter - Heavyweight co-main event
Dave Penalosa v Lerato Dlamini - WBC Silver title
Prince Patel v Michell Banquiz - IBO World title
Six undercard bouts:
Michael Hennessy Jr v Abdul Julaidan Fatah
Amandeep Singh v Shakhobidin Zoirov
Zuhayr Al Qahtani v Farhad Hazratzada
Lolito Sonsona v Isack Junior
Rodrigo Caraballo v Sajid Abid
Ali Kiydin v Hemi Ahio
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Pathaan
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Vines - In Miracle Land
Two stars
Results
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 2,200m, Winner: Zalman, Pat Cosgrave (jockey), Helal Al Alawi (trainer)
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m, Winner: Hisham Al Khalediah II, Fernando Jara, Mohamed Daggash.
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It's Monty Python's Crashing Rocket Circus
To the theme tune of the famous zany British comedy TV show, SpaceX has shown exactly what can go wrong when you try to land a rocket.
The two minute video posted on YouTube is a compilation of crashes and explosion as the company, created by billionaire Elon Musk, refined the technique of reusable space flight.
SpaceX is able to land its rockets on land once they have completed the first stage of their mission, and is able to resuse them multiple times - a first for space flight.
But as the video, How Not to Land an Orbital Rocket Booster, demonstrates, it was a case if you fail, try and try again.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
MATCH INFO
Serie A
Juventus v Fiorentina, Saturday, 8pm (UAE)
Match is on BeIN Sports
Like a Fading Shadow
Antonio Muñoz Molina
Translated from the Spanish by Camilo A. Ramirez
Tuskar Rock Press (pp. 310)
Scotland v Ireland:
Scotland (15-1): Stuart Hogg; Tommy Seymour, Huw Jones, Sam Johnson, Sean Maitland; Finn Russell, Greig Laidlaw (capt); Josh Strauss, James Ritchie, Ryan Wilson; Jonny Gray, Grant Gilchrist; Simon Berghan, Stuart McInally, Allan Dell
Replacements: Fraser Brown, Jamie Bhatti, D'arcy Rae, Ben Toolis, Rob Harley, Ali Price, Pete Horne, Blair Kinghorn
Coach: Gregor Townsend (SCO)
Ireland (15-1): Rob Kearney; Keith Earls, Chris Farrell, Bundee Aki, Jacob Stockdale; Jonathan Sexton, Conor Murray; Jack Conan, Sean O'Brien, Peter O'Mahony; James Ryan, Quinn Roux; Tadhg Furlong, Rory Best (capt), Cian Healy
Replacements: Sean Cronin, Dave Kilcoyne, Andrew Porter, Ultan Dillane, Josh van der Flier, John Cooney, Joey Carbery, Jordan Larmour
Coach: Joe Schmidt (NZL)
Mobile phone packages comparison
Who are the Sacklers?
The Sackler family is a transatlantic dynasty that owns Purdue Pharma, which manufactures and markets OxyContin, one of the drugs at the centre of America's opioids crisis. The family is well known for their generous philanthropy towards the world's top cultural institutions, including Guggenheim Museum, the National Portrait Gallery, Tate in Britain, Yale University and the Serpentine Gallery, to name a few. Two branches of the family control Purdue Pharma.
Isaac Sackler and Sophie Greenberg were Jewish immigrants who arrived in New York before the First World War. They had three sons. The first, Arthur, died before OxyContin was invented. The second, Mortimer, who died aged 93 in 2010, was a former chief executive of Purdue Pharma. The third, Raymond, died aged 97 in 2017 and was also a former chief executive of Purdue Pharma.
It was Arthur, a psychiatrist and pharmaceutical marketeer, who started the family business dynasty. He and his brothers bought a small company called Purdue Frederick; among their first products were laxatives and prescription earwax remover.
Arthur's branch of the family has not been involved in Purdue for many years and his daughter, Elizabeth, has spoken out against it, saying the company's role in America's drugs crisis is "morally abhorrent".
The lawsuits that were brought by the attorneys general of New York and Massachussetts named eight Sacklers. This includes Kathe, Mortimer, Richard, Jonathan and Ilene Sackler Lefcourt, who are all the children of either Mortimer or Raymond. Then there's Theresa Sackler, who is Mortimer senior's widow; Beverly, Raymond's widow; and David Sackler, Raymond's grandson.
Members of the Sackler family are rarely seen in public.
