Dubai tyre bursts killed 2, hurt 18 in 2013

Dubai Traffic Police has launched its annual 45-day ‘Summer Without Incidents’ road safety campaign to reduce car accidents, in line with the government’s aim of reducing accident deaths to zero per 100,000 by the year 2020.

Colonel Jamal Al Bannai, Assistant Director General the Directorate of Traffic in Dubai, said at a news conference that the campaign also targets people from neighbouring countries who come to Dubai by road.

He said car drivers usually check motor oil but often fail to check the condition of the tyres which sometimes result in fatal accidents.

According to Dubai Police’s General Directorate of Statistics, tyre bursts caused 12 accidents in 2012, killing two people and wounding 33 (five drivers, 29 passengers and a pedestrian). In three accidents, a tyre flew off, wounding five people (three drivers and two passengers).

The year 2013 saw nine accidents caused by tyre bursts, resulting in deaths of two people and injuries to 18. In one accident, a tyre flew off, killing one person and injuring two people (a driver and a passenger).

In the first six months of the current year 2014, there were three tyre-burst accidents which wounded six people (three drivers and three passengers). Tyre separation caused two accidents, injuring two people (driver and passenger).

Traffic Department statistics show that 16,454 cars were found to have faulty tyres in 2012. In 2013, the number dropped to 12,168 vehicles and 8,544 in the first half of 2014.
Colonel Jamal Al Bannai said that the ‘Summer Without Incidents’ campaign includes awareness lectures in shopping malls and distributing brochures to foreign drivers at traffic signals.

He stressed that the campaign focuses on educating travellers about the need to change car tyres in time to prevent bursts in the summer heat.

He said more travellers are now entering the UAE through border posts in Hatta and Ghuwaifat than during the month of Ramadan.


 

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