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Roads turn killing fields

SHARJAH — Roads in Sharjah have turned killing fields with reckless drivers on the prowl and negligent pedestrians adding to the nightmare. Police concede that traffic mishaps have become one of the biggest causes of deaths here. The latest in this tragic saga is the incident on Monday night when a Palestinian mother and her two children were killed on the spot after a speeding vehicle ran over them in Al Jizzat Area.

The accident took place when the mother, 31, and her two children, 12 and 10, were trying to cross the road in front of the Cooperative Society near Al Shaab Club.

The national's speeding car, which was coming from Obaid Al Jarwan Round About, killed the children and mother as their father stood on the pavement helplessly watching the death drama unfold.

Speaking to Khaleej Times, a source from Kuwaiti Hospital's Emergency section said the victims were brought to the hospital already dead. The mother had severe skull damages which led to internal and external bleeding that caused death instantly while the two children suffered injuries in chest and brain besides internal bleeding and wounds on legs and hands.

M. Al Bushier, employee of the Sharjah Cooperative Society, a witness to the accident, said the national who was driving the vehicle was speeding and his vehicle stopped 50 meters after it knocked down the victims. He said when the man ran over the family, the street was well-lighted and the road was not congested. He was not responding to an emergency call, he said, adding that he should have abided by the speed limit and be cautious while driving especially in places where there are a lot of pedestrians in the vicinity of mosques, schools and shopping areas.

Al Bushier said: ''I know the father of the family as he was regular customer of the society. He always comes with his children for shopping holding their hands and buys them what they want."

A source from Sharjah police said that traffic accidents have become one of the biggest causes of deaths in Sharjah. There is a large number of people killed and injured in road traffic accidents. There are numerous reasons to the causes of road deaths, which include driver fatigue and driver error, but the biggest enemy on the road is speeding. The more the vehicles speed the more likely they are to crash.

The roads of the emirate have been well maintained but have turned hazardous because of crazy drivers.

Most people including pedestrian are not abiding by traffic safety regulations in this country so that the traffic departments should intensify awareness campaign to educate them about the importance of following the rules. In this accident in particular both sides were wrong: the driver was exceeding the speed limit and the family were not using the pedestrian crossing way.

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