Dubai: Foggy mornings have become a regular sight of late, leading authorities to warn motorists on how to drive safely on the roads.
While drivers should pay attention to all roads at any given time of day, the National Centre of Meteorology (NCM) has pinpointed the five foggiest areas in the UAE where motorists should take extra precaution.
In the last year, the NCM recorded that four out of the five roads affected by the fog were in Abu Dhabi, which include: Al Ghwaifat, Suwaihan, Al Ajban and the road leading to Madinat Zayed in Al Dhafra.
In Dubai, the worst area commonly affected by thick fog was the Dubai - Al Ain Road, where the lowest visibility was reported to less than 500m in the early morning and late at night.
Over the last 10 years, the most serious accidents took place during foggy weather that caused injuries to dozens of motorists and their passengers.
During the last week alone, the UAE saw two major accidents that left 22 people injured from a 44-vehicle pile-up on the Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Road in Abu Dhabi, and nine injured in an accident involving 28 vehicles on Emirates Road in Dubai.
Twenty-two people sustained serious to moderate injuries after 44 vehicles crashed on Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Road in Abu Dhabi, February 6, 2018.
Brigadier Saif Muhair Al Mazroui, director of Traffic Department in Dubai Police, has repeatedly called on motorists to slow down in foggy weather and to keep a safe distance between other vehicles, “because the driver’s mistake in such weather can cost him his life”.
The NCM urged drivers to take all precautions when driving during bad weather, when thick fog reduces road visibility in the early morning.
The National Center of Meteorology Calls the drivers for taking all precautions and to follow traffic guidance because of fog formation and poor visibility until 10:00 AM tomorrow morning. @moiuae pic.twitter.com/xDjBKwB1Wo
— المركز الوطني للأرصاد (@NCMS_media) February 10, 2018
One of the most horrific accidents took place in March 2008 on a highway near Ghantoot, which killed five commuters and injured 277 in a 200-vehicle pile-up.
In April 2011, one person died and more than 60 people were injured in a major car pile-up involving 127 vehicles on the Dubai-Abu Dhabi highway, between Al Samha and Ghantoot.
In January 2015, around 20 people were injured in multi-vehicle collisions on the Abu Dhabi-Dubai road towards Al Shahama, as eye-witnesses claimed that up to 114 vehicles were involved in the accident.
In January 2016, approximately 23 people were injured after a total of 96 vehicles crashed on the Abu Dhabi - Al Ain Road as a result of low visibility during foggy weather.
In December 2016, at least 26 people sustained injuries in a multi-vehicle pile-up on Emirates Road that involved two cars and two minibuses.
Driving in the fog can pose as a serious hazard due to low visibility and all safety precautions should be taken while driving.
