Tyre blasts caused mainly by low quality and high air pressure killed 20 people and injured 151 others in the UAE in the first eight months of 2012.

Interior ministry statistics showed the number of victims this year was lower than in the first eight months of 2011, when 23 people were killed and 159 injured.

A ministry official blamed low quality, bad storage, high air pressure and the hot summer weather for the repeated blasts of tyres on the UAE roads.

“The repeated cases involving tyre blasts are considered a key cause of deadly accidents in the UAE,” said Brigadier Gaith Al Zaabi, director of the traffic coordination department at the ministry.

“My advice to drivers is to check their car tyres before setting off on long journeys…they should ensure their tyres conform to approved specifications and are of good quality…they should not go for cheap or good-looking tyres, which could be of low quality and pose a threat to their lives.”

Quoted by the Dubai-based Arabic language daily Albayan, he said drivers should also regularly check their car tyres as air pressure in the tyre normally increases in hot weather conditions, adding that this results in a blast.

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