Thirty-eight people who were among the injured in a major road accident in Abu Dhabi on Thursday morning were released from Mafraq hospital shortly after treatment, while 9 others will remain under observation, the Abu Dhabi Health Services Company (Seha) has announced. Seven have sustained fractures and two others remain in intensive care after they underwent surgeries for jaw and thigh injuries. As many as 47 people were injured in the accident involving buses of Belvedere British School and Al Dhafra Private School on Khaleej Al Arabi Road. An RTA bus was also involved in the crash. Immediately, Seha had put Mafraq Hospital and Shaikh Khalifa Medical City on high alert, Director of Emergency Preparedness at Seha Dr Marwan Al Kaabi said. Twenty five people had minor injuries, 20 others had moderate injuries and two were in serious condition, Mafraq Hospital CEO Mohammed Abdullah Al Dhaheri said. The medical staff dealt with the emergency in a professional manner, he said. The accident prompted Seha to put its Mafraq Hospital and the Shaikh Khalifa Medical City on high alert to deal with the cases, Dr. Marwan Al Kaabi, Director of Emergency Preparedness at Seha, said. Twenty-five people had minor injuries, 20 others had moderate injuries and two were in serious condition, the CEO of Mafraq Hospital, Mohammed Abdullah Al Dhaheri said. Seven of the nine injured people kept at the hospital sustained fractures, while remaining two are now in intensive care after they underwent surgeries for jaw and thigh injuries. The medical staff dealt with the emergency in a highly professional manner, he noted. Also read: Mohammed bin Zayed wishes injured kids speedy recovery WATCH: 47 injured in Abu Dhabi school bus accident
Road Safety UAE founder and managing director Thomas Edelmann said that driving a bus is serious business as that person is responsible for the lives of all the passengers. "Only selected, qualified, tested and well trained drivers should be behind the steering wheels," said the man behind UAE's first road safety portal. Edelmann suggested a stringent selection process, detailed assessment of the qualification and driving history, thorough test of the driving and psychological abilities, comprehensive and ongoing training regime for all bus drivers and in particularly school bus drivers. "We must learn from other countries and introduce a psychological mapping to identify such bus drivers who are prone to certain behaviour due to their personality profiles - those drivers must receive special attention in educating them and coaching them regularly and eventually consider these findings in the selection process," he said. Edelmann is looking forward to NATRANS conference and exhibition on October 25-26 in Abu Dhabi. "It will be an opportunity for direct dialogue of the involved stakeholders to improve the situation. A special school bus safety workshop has been created, which will be attended by all relevant stakeholders. Such initiatives and workshops are needed to improve the situation." RoadSafetyUAE will take part in the workshop together with school bus operators, the police forces, traffic management institutions and others.