Dubai: At least 17 people including 8 Indians were killed in a bus accident in Dubai, police confirmed.
Dubai Police, in a tweet, confirmed that the accident took place when the bus carrying 31 people overran a traffic signal near the metro station. The police said 17 people of different nationalities had died in the accident while five sustained grievous injuries.
More than half of the passengers on board were Oman-registered citizens as the bus was full of holidaymakers who were returning from Oman after the Eid holidays.
As per local media reports, the driver lost control of the bus and rammed the traffic signal near the Rashidiya metro station on Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road in Dubai.
Police said an investigation into the cause of the “unfortunate incident” is underway.
Meanwhile Indian consulate general in Dubai has expressed sincere condolences to the families of those who passed away in this tragic accident. “CG along with other officials and community members met the concerned relatives as well as hospital and police authorities late in the night to assure of all help.” Consulate General of India, Dubai said in a tweet.
The name of deceased Indians are Rajagopalan, Feroz Khan Pathan, Reshma Feroz Khan Pathan, Deepak Kumar, Jamaludeen Arakkaveettil, Kiran Johnny, Vasudev and Tilakram Jawahar Thakur.
The Oman government-owned bus company has also issued a statement on Twitter, offering condolences to the families of those who died and announced the suspension of their daily E05 services between Muscat and Dubai until further notice. It said the decision to suspend the service, which ran three times a day, was taken in coordination with Dubai’s Road and Transport Authority.
Dubai Police Chief Maj Gen Abdullah Al Marri termed the crash as a “tragic incident that led to the death of innocent people.”
Though the cause of the accident has not yet been made known, he called on motorists to always be vigilant while driving.