Sailors asked to be wary of artificial islands

Sailors have been asked to keep away from the man-made islands off Dubai’s coast, as number of accidents around the islands increases.

The boat owners have been advised to register with the electronic marine navigation system of Dubai Police that helps rescue operations in cases of emergency, Gulf News reported.

The Rescue Section of Dubai Police's Operations Department also urged the authorities and developers of these islands to put appropriate signals in place to warn marine traffic.

The warnings come following a series of accidents of boats running aground near these islands, more recently four Emiratis were involved in an accident when their boat ran aground on a sand patch in the area where the Palm Deira is coming up.

Major Yahya Hussain Mohammad Yahya, head of the Marine Rescue Section, said incidents of collisions at these islands have increased lately, as boat captains can be surprised when the islands appear in their way suddenly, especially at night, due to the lack of warning signals.

The official said sailors must register with the Marine Navigation System, which is a free service linking boat operators to the operations room of Dubai Police to make sure they are safe throughout their trip Maj. Yahya also warned traditional wooden dhows that run commercial operations between Dubai and the neighbouring countries from overloading as this causes navigational problems.

He said these ships frequently run aground and get entangles with the rocks off the man-made islands. The rescue operations are hampered by the fact that these ships are fragile in nature and mostly overloaded which makes them hard to tow away.