Abu Dhabi - 17 people injured in the accident caused due to a thick fog this morning.
Published: Sun 17 Jan 2016, 2:17 PM
Last updated: Sun 17 Jan 2016, 5:07 PM
A massive 69-vehicle pile-up on the road between Abu Dhabi and Al Ain has left 17 people injured, according to Abu Dhabi Police.
A video posted on the official twitter account of the Abu Dhabi police shows a large number of SUVs, sedans and trucks - many of them heavily damaged - on the road in the fog as dazed motorists look on. The weather is notably cloudy and visibility is poor.
A second video uploaded on social media by a resident shows skid marks on the road where vehicles attempted to brake or swerved to avoid collision. Some vehicles are shown to have ended up facing backwards after spinning 180-degrees during the crash.
Ismail Ali, an Emirati national, was driving towards Al Ain from Abu Dhabi on Saturday morning. His journey was slowed down considerably by both fog and the massive accident.
"When I left Abu Dhabi, the weather was fine. Around Al Faya area, 30km into the road towards Al Ain, the fog started, which became more dense as I drove," he told Khaleej Times.
"Closer to Al Ain, near Abu Samra, I noticed a lot of police cars, and then the accident. There was a long queue of cars, all over the road. Some were badly crushed. There were ambulances and police vehicles all over. Three police cars, at the beginning, middle and end of the accident areas, were directing the traffic, asking people to slow down, but not to stop," he noted. "Police were also trying to move all the cars on the hard shoulder, to allow the traffic to go through."
"I couldn't tell how many cars were involved, but they seem to go on for kilometres. It looked quite horrific. Most likely, the accident was cased by fog," added Ali.
The Al Ain-Abu Dhabi road has been the scene of several other accidents in recent years in which motorists have been injured or killed.
In January 2015, for example, three people were injured and a camel was left dead in a 19-vehicle accident during foggy conditions on the same road.
Another incident - this time in January 2014 - involved 57 vehicles and injured 14 people in heavy fog on the road near Abu Samra. One person was killed in a five-car accident the same month, which also led to two people suffering moderate and severe injuries.
In March 2008, foggy conditions on another road - between Dubai and Abu Dhabi - caused a massive accident that involved more than 150 vehicles, leaving four dead and over 300 injured.
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reporters@khaleejtimes.com
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