Dubai deploys system to avert fog disasters

Published Wednesday, January 04, 2012

By Staff

A new system deployed by Dubai Municipality will provide real-time information on critical weather indicators, including the density of fog, visibility, rainfall, and wind speed to Dubai Police and Coastal Guards via iPhones and BlackBerrys in order to avoid weather-related disasters, it has been announced.

Hussain Nasser Lootah, Director General of Dubai Municipality has said that the Municipality will collaborate with Dubai Police in monitoring difficult weather conditions in the emirate. Lootah said the initiative is aimed at avoiding accidents like the 2008 shocking crash in Ghantoot, in which four died and hundreds injured because of low visibility on the Abu Dhabi-Dubai highway. A similar pile-up in Jebel Ali killed a bus driver and injured 40 people two years later.

The announcement came during the launch of the main fog and meteorological station by Municipality in Al Warqa’a, which is connected with the network of 13 other substations in different locations across Dubai aiming at improving the safety on road and in sea.

Lieutenant General Dahi Khalfan Tamim, Commander in Chief of Dubai Police, Assistant Directors of Municipality, Mohammad Mashroom, Director of Survey Department and number of other officials were present on the occasion.

Mohammad Mashroom said that the information collected through the monitoring system will be sent to Dubai Police and Coastal Guards to take appropriate action in case of low visibility and heavy fog enabling them to warn drivers about fog conditions to prevent road accidents.

“The system used in these stations will provide information on density of fog, low visibility, degree of humidity, rainfall, water level, wind speed and temperature of weather and sand in Dubai. This data would be provided on time to Dubai Police and Coastal Guards, which will be spread via iPhones and BBs,” Mashroom said.

“Low visibility due to fog has been one of the main reasons of several road accidents across the emirate. These stations located adjacent to the main roads in the emirate will provide information on fog conditions in the city especially in the main roads and highways,” he said.

Eight automated fog-detection machines are located on land, mostly near main highways. Five others near coasts and one have been set up in the sea, about 20km off the Jumeirah coast.

Project coordinator Sachin Kumar Chauhan said a team from Survey Department visited some successful fog monitoring systems inside and outside the country to adopt most suitable one in Dubai.

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